Aficionado
by Katana Star
Summary: Unsure of how she ended up in the Land of Hot Water, Sakura tries to make ends meet in a foreign land. Her world is surrounded by mystery and nothing seems to make sense. Unfortunately, a weird masked stalker seems to further complicate things.
1. Nuisance

A/N: Do not own Naruto…obviously.

* * *

"Are you sure this is the place? Isn't this Hidan's hometown?" A cloaked Venus Flytrap asked a long haired man wearing a bright orange mask.

It felt as though village enveloped the duo in a shroud of balmy air. The man paced up and down the outside of a tall wooden pillar. He stroked his chin pondering to himself for a moment.

"The Hot Water Daimyo is hosting a meeting with the Fire, Wind, and Water Daimyo. You know what to do." The masked man waved his hand. The Venus Flytrap immediately morphed into the earth below.

_Fui ni agatta __hanabi o futari de miageta toki*_

The masked man scouted the village following the sultry feminine voice singing in the distance. The pneumatic voice resonated within his ears like a sweet tickle.

_Muchuu de miteru kimi no kao o  
Sotto nusumi mita no_

He pursued the source of the voice until he came upon a small crowd of people gathered in front of a young girl. She sang acapella and possessed a light shade of pink hair and jade colored eyes. She wore a red top, a long white frilly skirt, and a grey and white cat hat over her head. She appeared to be in her later teens. Perhaps seventeen or eighteen? A large vivaciously colored Macaw sat contentedly on her shoulder as she sang to the crowd of tourists. Person after person dropped handfuls of coins into a straw hat. Yugakure was a peaceful and prosperous village enriched in fashion and art. Tourists often flocked to the village to become engrossed in the rich culture and world famous hot springs. But, this girl seemed to be oddly out of place. She radiated a weak yet distinct chakra evidently labeling her a kunoichi within the crowd of civilians. But something else seemed particularly strange about this young girl. She seemed to possess an eerie aura that he had recognized from somewhere long ago. What was this feeling? Why did this strange aura rouse an unsettling twinge within his gut?

The girl finished up her song causing the crowd to disperse. She gathered the coins in the straw hat and quietly squeaked joyfully to herself. The girl suddenly collided with a burly man causing them both to stumble backward. She widened her eyes as the man snatched up her coins and darted off.

"Hey!" The pinkette shouted furiously. "Get back here!"

The man glanced backward at his pursuer and rammed into a much shorter figure. He dropped the coins scattering them across the dirt pathway and cursed irately. She curled her fingers into a fist as she caught up to the burly thief. The thief suddenly grasped the throat of the masked man and hoisted him into the air.

"You little brat! Look what you did!" He snarled through his yellowed teeth.

"Shannaro!" The pinkette suddenly decked the thief with her fist.

The burly man released his victim's throat as he was launched several feet from the impact of her fist. The masked man hid behind the girl and raised his fist in the air victoriously. She dusted her hands off and spun around to face the strange man hiding behind her. He wore a plain black shirt and pants with a long green scarf. He had long, spiky raven hair and sported a strange circular patterned orange mask.

"That was awesome! You sure showed him!" He chirped in a high pitched tone.

She shook her head indifferently and focused on recovering the scattered coins. He stood behind her as she crawled on all fours to gather her money. She turned around as a finger poked her back.

"Umm…I need your help…" He tilted his head and scratched the back of his head nervously.

"Yes?" The pinkette lifted her head after finally recovering the spilt coins.

He pulled a scroll from his pocket and unraveled it. "I can't seem to find my hotel on this map."

He handed the scroll to her and poked his nose over her shoulder as she scrutinized the map.

"Are you kidding me? You're trying to find a single hotel on a WORLD MAP?" She snarled through her teeth.

"Do you think it's close by somewhere?"

"Do you know what it's called or what it looks like?"

He lifted a finger and nodded. "It's called 'hotel' and I think it has windows…oh, and a roof!"

She forced a drawn out sigh and pressed the map back into his hands. "I don't think I can help you…"

"Please! I just need a place to stay!"

"Well, I've been staying at a hotel for the past two days." She folded her arms. "I can show you where it is."

"Thank you! Thank you!" He clasped his hands together mirthfully.

She winced inwardly as the strange masked man followed closely behind her on route to the hotel. They entered a grandeur hotel lobby with a running fountain. The receptionist waved to the girl as she headed up the stairs to her room. The man followed her inside the room and immediately leapt onto the bed.

"Umm…aren't you going to go book a room?" She raised a single eyebrow.

He continued jumping on the bed like an amused child. "Don't need to. I already found a room."

"Ok then…I'm going to go find something for dinner."

"What's for dinner?" He sat forcefully down onto the mattress as he ceased his jumping.

"I don't know…wait…what?" She clenched her teeth together. "Aren't you going to go to your room?"

"I already am in my room!"

"Oh, hell no!" She grasped him by the scarf. "You are not staying here in my room!"

"But…but…"

"Go get your own room!"

"But…but…" He sniffled loudly. "Tobi doesn't have any money…"

"Go panhandle on the streets like I've been doing all day and then get your own room!"

"But you owe Tobi for stopping that man who stole your money…"

She gripped his scarf tighter as if she could crush the fabric within her hand. "You didn't stop that man! He ran into you!"

"But…but…"

"No more buts!"

"But…"

"Get out of my room!" She screamed furiously.

The man rose from the bed and lowered his head in a downcast manner. He grasped the door handle and glanced back at the pinkette. "All Tobi's ever wanted was a friend…"

She sighed in defeat and raised her hand. "Wait!"

He lifted his head as she motioned for him to come to her. She opened his hand and dropped a small handful of coins within his palm. "Please accept it as a small gift from me."

"Thank you…um…" He tilted his head inquisitively. "What is your name?"

"Sakura." She gave a slight but sweet smile.

He pointed to his chest vainly. "I'm Tobi!"

His name wasn't a surprise due to the fact he kept referring to himself in third person. She sighed in relief as she relinquished her remaining money in order to allow the man to buy a room for himself. He slid something out of his pocket and handed it to her.

"A hawk pendant?" She inspected the small figurine on a silver chain.

He slid the necklace around her neck and hooked the chain together. "This is my 'thank you' gift to you."

"Thank you, Tobi." She beamed before he left the room.

She lay down on the large comforter of the bed. Unfortunately, she would have to skip dinner and acquire more money tomorrow. At least that annoying man was now out of her hair. She slipped off her hat and rested her head on the soft, fluffy pillow. Before she could doze off into a deep sleep, a loud noise rattled her awake. She slipped the covers over her head and reached for her hat.

"Tobi bought us dinner!"

Sakura slipped her hat over her head and tossed off the covers. "Tobi, you scared me! Why are you back?"

"Tobi got dinner!" He opened a carton of dango, inarizushi, gyoza, fried dumplings, curry bread, and mochi ice cream.

"You spent the money on food instead of your own room?" Sakura pressed her hand against her mouth.

Tobi pointed to her growling stomach. "Sakura-chan was hungry so Tobi got us food."

She clasped her hand over her stomach in embarrassment and sighed. "Umm…thanks, Tobi."

They sat on the bed together choosing random pieces of food to satisfy their hunger. Tobi turned his face sideways and only slightly lifted his mask. Sakura pursed her lips together as her inner curiosity nagged her to see what was hidden behind the mask. Was he horribly disfigured? Was he in some kind of accident which tarnished his looks or perhaps he was born with a disfigured face. She was dying to inquire about his mask but she held her tongue to prevent demonstrating rudeness toward the strange man. He smacked his lips loudly and covered the barely exposed portion of his mouth with the mask. She feed small pieces of the curry bread to the Scarlet Macaw perched on the back board of the bed.

"Did you enjoy the food, Sakura-chan?"

"Yes, thank you, Tobi." Sakura wiped her fingers on a napkin and tossed away the empty carton.

"Umm…you're not planning on staying here, are you?" She dusted the crumbs off the comforter.

Tobi quickly crawled underneath the bed sheets. "We can share the bed."

"Are you crazy?" She shrieked loudly. "There's no way I'm going to share a room with you nonetheless a bed!"

"Is there a problem?"

"Yes there is a problem!" The color quickly drained from Sakura's cheeks. "I'm a woman and you're a man! I don't want you anywhere near me while I'm sleeping!"

She yanked the comforter off the bed and hugged it to her chest. "Either you get out or I'm going to go sleep in the bathtub with the door locked."

He suddenly grasped her wrist before she could open the bathroom door. "But Sakura-chan…Tobi can't sleep alone…"

"And why not?"

"Because…Tobi is too scared to sleep alone!"

"Oh my god…how old are you?" Sakura's head suddenly throbbed vigorously.

He pulled her petite body toward the bed and pleaded with her. "It's dangerous out there. We could protect each other."

"Dangerous?" Sakura forced a laugh. "Are you kidding me? We're in a tourist village! We're in one of the safest places on this planet!"

"But there's a murderer on the loose somewhere in the village!"

"How do I know _you're_ not the murderer?" Sakura cocked a single eyebrow.

"Tobi's a good boy!"

"Ugh…" She buried the side of her face into her palm. Was this guy serious? She carried the large comforter into the bathroom and tossed it into the empty tub. She slammed the bathroom door shut and climbed into her makeshift bathtub bed. It wasn't long until the obnoxious man began to knock on the bathroom door.

"Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…"

She buried her head beneath the comforter hoping to drown out the sound of his voice.

"Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…"

"What?" Sakura lost control of the volume of her voice.

"Can you come out?"

"Why?"

"I think it's possessed."

Sakura opened the bathroom door and glared at the masked man. He poked the fluffed up Macaw perched on the headboard of the bed repeatedly in the breast. It hissed loudly following the movement of his finger with its beak wide open.

"Quit harassing her and let me get some sleep." She groaned loudly as she headed back to the bathroom and closed the door.

Not too long afterwards, a loud rasping noise on the wooden door startled her.

"Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…Sakura-chan…"

"WHAT?"

Her face flushed a deep shade of red as she reopened the door. "What is it this time?"

He twiddled his fingers nervously and gave a slight chuckle. "Um…Tobi's never slept alone before and it's very lonely here…"

"Fine!" She sighed in defeat and tossed the comforter back on the bed.

"If you dare try anything funny I will break your ribs." Sakura glared at the masked man. Why did she even concede to this pathetic man? Evidently, she had grown far too tired to continue arguing with him. She just wanted so desperately to get some rest.

"Tobi promises he would never do anything to Sakura-chan." He stated as she slipped beneath the comforter. She scooted as far away as possible from him and turned off the lights.

"Sakura-chan?"

"Yes?" She tried to stifle a growl.

"Why are you going to bed with your hat on?"

"I don't know. Why are you going to bed with your mask on?" She retorted.

He didn't respond. She figured he didn't want to speak of it. Perhaps that would finally shut up that obnoxious mouth of his.

* * *

*The lyrics are from Utakata Hanabi by Supercell

A/N: Reviews would be awesome. More to come in the next chapter :)


	2. Comrade

She discovered that morning that Tobi had indeed kept his promise. His side of the bed had been vacant and the bathroom door was open. Perhaps he had headed outside? She took a quick shower and changed her clothes. She wore a black tank top, a short striped skirt, and a black and white mouse hat. She headed out the hotel to begin her daily panhandling routine. Singing also helped ease her stress and forget the fact that she had let a complete stranger sleep in the same bed as her. Wherever that weird Tobi guy was, she hoped he had found his own separate way…away from her. She shrugged to herself and continued to sing to the small crowd gathered in front of her.

"I swear I'll fucking kill him…"

She heard an agitated voice speak in the background.

"Just shut up already…"

"That bastard will pay." A man wearing a large straw hat brandished a triple bladed scythe. She vaguely remembered once seeing those black cloaks adorned with red clouds. Where had she seen those cloaks before?

"Another filthy panhandler. If you knew how to manage your money you wouldn't be here on the streets begging for people's change." The taller man scuffed at Sakura.

Her larynx became paralyzed as her heart thundered within her chest. The two cloaked men turned their attention solely to her. Her skull suddenly throbbed with an unbearable pain which rattled her conscious.

"This is why I hate this fucking village. It's just a major shithole now." The man with the scythe spat.

The taller man kicked aside the straw hat containing her coins. "Get a job."

She widened her glossy eyes as the two men departed. The crowd uttered a mild murmur and stared at her in utter bewilderment. Her hands trembled before her face as she watched the black and red cloaks vanish from sight.

Black and red…

Black and red…?

The crowd suddenly began to morph into a vortex of distorted color. She staggered clumsily as if intoxicated by the array of vibrant colors. The sky and the earth seemed to rapidly reverse positions. Her head seared with an agonizing pain but it was nothing compared to the sudden onset of nausea. It felt as though something was adding great pressure on her inner ear. Her glazed emerald eyes slowly drifted off center while her head began to tilt upward and toward the left. Her numbed legs could barely support holding her upright.

Thud!

_Please stop! No! _

All she could see was a red blinding light emanating from all around her. A loud high-pitched ringing noise deafened her to the external world. She struggled to cover her ears from the piercing noise but her entire body seemed as though she had lost complete control of her limbs. Her balance was excruciatingly impaired and she wished she could simply vomit to release the pain and nausea brewing within her gut. For some particular reason, she felt the urge to scream at the top of her lungs although her larynx was paralyzed with sheer trepidation. Sakura's eyelids flipped open as something wet and slimy touched the apple of her cheek. A pair of chopsticks shoved noodles in her mouth. Sakura gave a muffled cry as she swallowed the string of noodles. She glanced at her environment then to quiet man sitting by her bedside with a carton of food and a pair of chopsticks in his hand.

"Sakura-chan?" Tobi asked as he set the carton on the nightstand beside the bed.

Sakura recognized the familiar light beige walls of her hotel room. "Tobi…? Wha…what happened?"

"You passed out. Sakura-chan should not overexert herself so early in the morning." Tobi wagged his finger.

"Overexert myself? All I did was sing. Besides…I hardly got any sleep last night."

"Tobi didn't snore, did he?" He tilted his head inquisitively.

Sakura shook her head. "No, that's not it…"

Tobi shoved another mouthful of noodles in her mouth.

"Don't feed me! It's awkward!" Sakura cried out indignantly.

Tobi shoved another mouthful at her anyway. "You passed out because you don't have any energy. You're worrying Tobi."

"Why do you care?"

"Because Sakura-chan is Tobi's best friend."

Sakura contorted her face. "But you've only known me for one day."

"Sakura-chan means a lot to Tobi! Nobody has ever been nice to Tobi before." He lowered his head dejectedly.

Sakura widened her brilliant jade eyes. Was he ostracized for his appearance? Perhaps he had been a social pariah since he is quite vigilant about hiding his face. Or maybe he was merely putting on some kind of cheesy façade? He handed her a glass of water and helped her sit upright. A sudden rush of heat overwhelmed her forehead as she struggled to stay upright in her upper body. Her head slid back down against the pillow allowing her a moment of solace from the nausea.

"I feel dizzy…" She murmured faintly slowly closing her eyes.

Tobi rose from her bedside and headed toward the bathroom. He pulled a hotel cloth from the rack and soaked it under the cold running water from the facet. He pressed the palm of his hand against her warm brow and removed the black and white knit hat.

"Interesting…" He muttered to himself as he gazed upon her exposed cranium.

* * *

"Naruto-kun!" A dark haired girl trotted up to a blonde boy.

"Hinata…?" He turned around to face the Hyuuga. "Is something wrong…?"

She hugged her own body firmly within her arms. "Something…just doesn't feel right…"

"Huh?" He raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

Two men entered the village gates carrying a wooden stretcher on each end. Naruto felt an eerie knot constrict the muscles of his chest as he spotted a black body bag atop the stretcher. Had somebody been killed in action? He and Hinata stood stationary while the Chuunin examiners, Izumo and Kotetsu, sauntered past them with the corpse.

A purple haired ANBU entered the Hokage's office. Tsunade dozed on the surface of her desk burying her face within the large stacks of paperwork piled up on the desk.

"Tsunade-sama…" The female ANBU startled the napping Hokage.

"What do you want? I wasn't sleeping!" Tsunade snapped furiously.

The ANBU remained deadpan despite Tsunade's explosive outburst. She merely folded her arms and waited for the Hokage to regain her composure.

"I regret to inform you that…" The ANBU paused momentarily. "…your apprentice, Haruno Sakura…is dead."


	3. Grieving

Six shinobi stood before the Hokage in her office. Shizune huddled the corpulent pig close to her chest while the Godaime mentally prepared herself to bear the news to the anxious shinobi awaiting her response. Her eyes panned the room examining each individual face of the young shinobi standing before her—Sai, Sasuke, Naruto, Ino, and Shikamaru. Hatake Kakashi stood behind the reformed Team 7 missing their sole female member.

"Baa-chan?" Naruto said faintly as the Godaime seemed to hide something behind those glossy amber eyes.

"Might as well say this now…" She forced herself to speak.

The young shinobi exchanged glances as Tsunade sighed into her interlaced fingers.

"Haruno Sakura is dead…"

"What?" Naruto interjected loudly. "But…"

"I assigned her to a simple solo mission which she dutifully agreed to execute. She was to deliver medical assistance to a small village just outside Konoha. It seems she was likely ambushed by rogue ninja who ended up splitting her head open. According to our autopsy, she died instantly as a result of the head trauma." Tsunade shifted backward as the devastating weight of her words seemed to ease the excruciating burden upon her chest.

"How could you send her to her own death like that? Why did you send her on such a dangerous mission!" Naruto's screams resonated within the walls of the office.

Ino winced as the volume of his frantic voice mustered tears to her eyes. Shikamaru caught her in his arms as she collapsed against his chest. The blonde kunoichi sobbed loudly and uncontrollably while Kakashi struggled to hush the emotional Naruto.

Tsunade closed her eyes and spoke again. "The mission itself was simple and low-risk. I had complete faith that Sakura was fully capable of completing the task and fending for herself should she encounter trouble."

"You could've at least had someone accompany her to make sure she was safe!" Naruto stormed out of the office slamming the door with intense force causing the framed photographs in the office to fall from the walls.

_Sakura isn't dead…Sakura can't be dead…This has to be some kind of mistake…_

Naruto mentally repeated to himself as he descended down the stairs of the Hokage tower. Each footfall seemed to shake loose the tears he struggled to hold back.

_If only I had been there with her…I at least could've protected her…and now…_

He yelped as he miscalculated his step down the staircase and missed the ledge. He tumbled down the rest of the stairway crashing his cranium against the banister and sidewall. His body finally came to rest upon reaching the landing. He couldn't even feel the pain from his battered extremities. It seemed so superficial and insignificant compared to the agony sweltering within his chest. He wanted to berate himself for allowing a loud whimper to escape his throat. Another whimper escaped his throat…followed by another.

_Now she is gone forever…and I can never tell her how I truly feel…_

He curled his fingers into a loose fist as he uttered a despondent bellow. He buried his face into the cold, solid floor hoping to stifle the sharp pain grasping his lungs.

"…Sakura…chan…!" He pressed his face against the floor. His shoulders quivered forcefully as his sobs echoed within the vacant stairway.

* * *

The pasty skinned-shinobi watched the Uchiha repeatedly punch the thick trunk of a tree. He had heard of the girl's fondness for Sasuke from the other Konoha rookies. Shreds of bark scattered in the air each time his fist impacted the tree. Naruto had mentioned making a promise to the fallen kunoichi about bringing home the defected Uchiha who had sought the tutelage of Orochimaru. Sasuke continued wailing on the tree ignoring Sai's presence behind him.

"I didn't know that girl very well but…" Sai began.

Sasuke merely growled his words. "Don't talk to me about it…"

He brushed his sore knuckles on his shirt and continued pounding the thick cork of the tree. Although Sasuke was now revered as the village hero for slaughtering the atrocious Orochimaru and returning to Konoha, he had never even received the chance to reunite with the Team 7 kunoichi before her death. Sai continued to observe Sasuke's repetitive clouting of the tree. Although nagged by the urge to consult his book on emotions, he deduced the Uchiha was the type to withhold his feelings. Did he love Sakura the way she loved him? Was he fraught with regret upon hearing of her demise?

"Sasuke…"

"Leave me alone!" Sasuke snapped back at the intrusive Sai.

Sai abandoned observing Sasuke's activities and sought to encounter the Team 7 leader. Where had Naruto gone? He pondered to himself. He meandered listlessly until he stumbled across the silver-haired sensei kneeling before a single grave in the village cemetery. He observed Kakashi from the distance hoping to catch the words he muttered to himself.

"I…I wasn't there to protect her…just like…I wasn't there to protect you…"

Who was Kakashi-sensei speaking to? It didn't matter. He wouldn't receive a direct answer from Kakashi if he inquired anyway.

* * *

She lifted her heavy eyelids as something bright seemed to illuminate her eyelids. She gave a shrill shriek upon opening her eyes to something very close and very orange. "AHH!"

"AHH!" Tobi shrieked in response.

She winced back toward the headboard away from the mask hovering right above her face. "Tobi! Why are you right in my face?"

He waved his hands frantically brandishing the black and white mouse hat in his hand. Sakura grit her teeth together and combed her fingers through her bangs. Tobi inspected the large fresh scar extending down Sakura's scalp down to her mid-brow. Her bangs were tinged a deep shade of crimson where the hairs overlapped the site of the large scar.

"What happened?" Tobi tilted his head in bewilderment.

"I don't know." Sakura folded her arms sullenly. "I tried washing my hair numerous times but I can't get the blood stain out. And the scar…it's a major eyesore!"

"Tobi doesn't think it looks that bad. Is that why you wear a hat all the time?" He dangled the hat in front of her face tauntingly.

"Baka! Give it back!" She snatched the hat from his fingers and hugged it to her chest.

"Baka! Baka!" The parrot uttered in a raspy voice.

Sakura and Tobi glanced at the Scarlet Macaw perched atop the headboard of the bed.

"Baka! Baka! Naruto-baka!"

"Shh…" Sakura hushed the noisy bird. "I'm sorry. Those are the only words Suzu-chan knows how to say."

Tobi touched a finger to his chin. "Naruto?"

Sakura stroked the crown of the parrot's head gingerly as it perched on her finger. "I tried feeding her narutomaki* before but she doesn't seem to like it."

"Sakura…" Tobi's voice suddenly acquired a grave undertone. "Where are you from?"

"Where am I from?" Sakura touched the finger of her unoccupied hand to her lip. "…I don't know…"

* * *

*Narutomaki is the spiral kamaboko in ramen which Naruto is named after.

A/N: I was wondering if anyone would catch the Trinity Blood reference in chapter one. Good job! As for the rest of your questions…keep reading! Also, thanks for the reviews. ^^


	4. Entertainment

A/N: Just a reminder…this fic is rated M. And things are about to get really juicy.

* * *

_He crawled onto the bed reticently like a jaguar lurking beneath the dense vegetation in pursuit of its prey. She slept soundly half covered by the beige down comforter. Her body was completely relaxed and elongated as she shifted to her back. He stroked the side of her hip tracing the smooth delicate curves beneath the pads of his fingers. His hands eased up to the grove of her wrists and bound them together with a cold steel chain. He worked his hands down the length of her arms and descended his nose toward her luscious, pristine hair. The intoxicating scent sent shivers relaying down his spinal column. The aroma seemed to conjure a sudden formation of saliva within his mouth. _

"_Ugh…uhh…" She muttered lightly as the long lashed eyelids suddenly flipped open. _

"_Shh…this will all be over soon…" His cool breath brushed the lobe of her ears. _

_She squirmed beneath the weight of his body but to no avail. He simply pressed himself upon her trapping her body between him and the bed. _

"_I've merely been putting on a façade in front of you…but I can no longer restrain myself." He grasped her silky locks within his fingers and inhaled the scent of her hair once again. "I've been longing to show you the true me." _

_She screamed as his hands forced her chest downward. His fingers slid behind her back dexterously undoing the small hooks of her bra. Her breasts fell free as he tossed aside the thin laced bra. She kicked her legs vigorously and struggled to roll onto the side of her hip. He ignored her flinging legs and pinned her hips down flat against the bed. He groped her breast within the cup of his hand and plunged his mouth into the side of her neck like a voracious cobra. Her screams reverberated off the walls of the small room. _

"_Please! Stop!" She cried out desperately. A warm speckle of sweat streamed down from her brow onto the pale bed sheet. "I don't want to!" _

"_Keep resisting. It's only exciting the monster within me." He rested his chin on her throat. _

"_Hahh…Hahh…." She panted loudly rattling the metal chain against the bedposts. _

_He buried his face into her soft breast and grasped her nipple within his thin lips. _

"_Ahh…Ahhh….!" Her frightened voice only seemed to make his movements more slow and excruciating. _

_He whispered into her collarbone. "That's it…" _

_All she could see were those chilling demonic eyes and the callous smirk etched in his lips. It was almost as though time seemed to stand still prolonging his predatory assault. His tongue traced her chest up to the grove of her trachea. He tilted her head upward continuing his path up to her chin. He gave a slight laugh to himself and ventured down toward her thighs. He hindered the movement of her legs with one hand and tore off her panties in one swift motion. _

"_Stop it! Stop! Please!" _

_He ignored her cries as he liberated his arousal by slipping off his pants. Her cries dramatically increased in volume and intensity as he forcefully parted open her legs. _

"_Ahh! Ohh! Ahh!" _

_He was quickly closing in on her sacred space and there was little she could do to fend for her virginity. _

"_Call my name." He stated as he clenched her flesh tightly drawing blood to the tips of his fingernails. _

"_Ahh! Ahh!" _

"_Say my name!" _

"…Tobi!" Sakura called out as she tossed the covers off her head.

He sat cross-legged on the right side of the bed next to the resting Sakura. He seemed heavily fixated on the TV adjacent to the bed.

"What the hell are you watching?"

He answered in a blissful tone. "Porn."

"Well turn it off!" Sakura sat upward to brush the stray frizzy hair from her face.

"_Ahh! Ooh! Uhh_!" Tobi turned his head to the erotic sounds of the TV. He then snapped his head back to the pinkette sitting on his left.

"Tobi…" Sakura muttered flatly.

He directed his head back to the TV.

"_Ahh! Oooh! Aaaah!_"

He glanced again at the agitated Sakura whose frown only seemed to deepen.

"Tobi…?" Her voice acquired a nuance of inquisitiveness although her tone descended.

His eyes immediately shifted back to the television screen.

"_Ahh! Ooh!_"

"Tobi…" Sakura curled her fingers and growled under her breath. She yelled out as he eyed her once again. "Don't you dare get any ideas! Give me the remote!"

She rapidly pounced on him as he protectively huddled the remote against his chest.

A soft knock rattled the room door.

Tobi shifted Sakura's body causing her to lose her slight grip on the edge of the remote.

"Give it to me!" She cried out.

Another knock sounded on the door.

Sakura grappled with the masked man on top of the bed. She wrapped her legs around his waist and grasped his wrist in one hand. Even though she twisted his left wrist against its axis, he didn't seem to wince. He held the remote in his right hand and waved it tauntingly in front of her face. The parrot perched atop of the headboard flapped her wings frantically and emitted a harsh screeching noise.

Sakura roared loudly. "I want it now, Tobi!"

The hotel room door suddenly came ajar. A short brunette woman entered the room carrying an envelope.

"I have a…" She began. She gasped loudly and dropped the envelope as she spotted Sakura pinned underneath Tobi with her legs wrapped around his waist. The pornographic program played on the TV adjacent to the bed. "Oh my god! I am so sorry!"

Without wasting a second, she slammed the door shut. Sakura snatched the television remote from Tobi's fingers and clouted him on the top of the head with it. She turned off the TV and quickly separated her body from his.

"Now look what you did! She probably thought we were…" Sakura's fingers trembled out of sheer mortification. She clobbered him on the skull with the remote once again. "Idiot!"

She climbed off the top of the bed forcefully and retrieved the letter.

"Who is it for?" Tobi poked his head over her shoulder.

"_To_ _the pink hair girl with the bird_…" She read aloud pushing his head away from her face. "It's for me."

She quickly scanned through the letter and uttered a mirthful squeal.

"What is it?" Tobi asked again.

"The Hot Water Daimyo personally asked me to sing tonight at the Blue Springs Restaurant! I'm so excited!"

"You're going to do it?"

Sakura clasped her hands together. "Of course! He's even offering to pay me for…"

"Is something wrong?"

"I…I didn't make enough money to pay for the hotel room today!"

"Oh, about that..." Tobi scratched the back of his head nervously. He fished for something in his back pockets and dropped two wallets on the bed.

"Tobi where did you get this? Oh, wait…you pickpocketed them." She sighed into her hand.

He simply gave a light chuckle to her displeasure.

* * *

Four men and a woman sat at a large round table before the stage.

"This place is exquisite! You have certainly outdone yourself!" A fat, squinty eyed man with a thin mustache and chin beard clapped his hands together. "The food is simply delicious."

"It is my pleasure. Please enjoy yourselves." A man with a thick downward pointing mustache grinned.

A fat woman hugging an agitated cat gazed up at the pink haired beauty singing a soft, soothing melody. "I have to say, Tora and I really enjoy the music here too."

_Koko ni aru no wa  
Kimi ga ima made eranda michi no  
Kotae tachi yo hora jishin mo te susumeba ii  
Tottemo shizen na no, ame agari no  
Asufaruto ni niji ga kakaru youni*_

The thick mustached man gave a smug smirk. "She is one of our finest artists."

"What is her name?" A long horsey faced man inquired.

The Hot Water Daimyo took a large gulf of water. "That is a splendid robe you're wearing!"

The Fire Daimyo gave him an intense glare. His expression suddenly softened as he released a hearty chuckle. "I…love this robe!"

Sakura's eyes scanned the crowd. Evidently, the most exquisite table seated the Daimyo. She didn't recognize any other faces in the crowd. They must've been the Hot Water Daimyo's personal guests. The restaurant radiated a balmy, tropical atmosphere reflecting the village's famous hot springs and exotic vegetation. The décor involved several bamboo trees and large foreign plants she had never seen before. She finished up her song and gave a respectful bow. Someone waved feverishly toward the back of the dining room. She followed the motioning hand toward the back tables until she came across a familiar face…or rather mask.

"Tobi? How did you get in?" She pulled up a seat and sat next to him.

He gave a playful laugh. "The front door. How else?"

"No I mean…" Was the restaurant restricted to only the Water Daimyo's personal guests? She recalled seeing guards in front of the entrance requesting to see her invitation. She shrugged her shoulders and abandoned her thoughts as Tobi called out to the waitress.

She placed to shots of sake on the table and smiled at Sakura.

"I love your singing." She nodded her head.

"Thank you." Sakura answered with a grin.

Sakura quickly downed her sake as she gazed at the marvelously ornamented Daimyo and their family members. She released a loud sigh and rested her cheek against her hand.

"I've always wondered what it would be like to marry a man in power." She downed another shot of sake.

Tobi merely watched as she began to relax and soften her expression. She leaned in closer to him and pressed her hand against the side of her mouth.

"Wouldn't it be funny if that fat woman's cat was really a ninja?" She giggled to herself. "I remember this one time I went to a palace of cats and fought a ninja cat. And then there turned out to be an even bigger, monster ninja cat!"

"Uhh…Sakura-chan?" Tobi tilted his head.

She turned around and pointed her finger at a large potted plant behind her. "Stop staring at me!"

Tobi scratched the crown of his head and scooted Sakura's glass aside. Was she really this much of a lightweight? "Sakura-chan, you've had bit too much sake."

Sakura rose from her seat. "I'm not drunk! And tell that plant to stop staring at me!"

She suddenly kicked over the large clay pot containing one the restaurant's exotic plants. The pot wobbled for a moment and fell over causing the clay to shatter. The restaurant occupants snapped their heads in unison toward the loud noise. Soft, moist soil spilled onto the carpeting. Something with an anthropomorphic figure crawled out from beneath the spilt soil. It quickly staggered to its feet and locked its feral yellow eyes on its target.

* * *

*The lyrics from For You by AZU


	5. Pandemonium

A/N: Sorry for the long delay. Enjoy!

* * *

"What is that?" Sakura's mouth hung open limply.

The black and white creature lunged for the Daimyo table. It fell in a catlike position as Sakura grasped onto its ankles. Both Sakura and the creature were face down on the luscious carpeting. It struggled in her grasp and suddenly split longitudinally down the middle. The black half of the creature rushed toward the Daimyo while the white half violently thrashed its legs about freeing itself from Sakura's grip.

"It's coming right for us!" The Hot Water Daimyo shouted as the Daimyo and their family members immediately rose from their seats.

Sakura snatched the backrest of a chair and slammed it down on the white being. Fragments of wood split apart around the being's body. It uttered a pained moan and collapsed face first to the floor. She scanned through the crowd of panicking occupants in an attempt to locate the black creature. Although the rest of the diners had abandoned their seats and scattered, Tobi remained seated and swirled the sake in his glass. She closed in on the disgusting black creature curling her fingers around a dinner fork. It towered menacingly above the downed wife of the Fire Daimyo. She trapped her writhing cat against her large chest in an unyielding death grip. The projectile fork pierced through the creature's back. It didn't seem phased by the meek utensil but Sakura had successfully distracted it from attacking the Fire Daimyo's wife.

"Look out!" The rotund woman cried out.

Sakura sprung onto the balls of her feet liberating the weight from her heels. She whipped her head around her shoulder catching sight of the white creature in the corner of her eye. Her heel swung backward in a crescent motion sending the creature straight into the wall. Satisfied with her powerful and accurate spinning back heel kick, she smirked inwardly and grabbed the ledge of a vacated table. The black creature widened its feral yellow eyes as she hoisted the heavy table above her head. Within a fraction of a second, she had suddenly hurled the table straight into the monster. It was rendered into a temporary daze before quickly recovering to its feet.

_How was that thing able to sustain the damage?_ She pondered to herself.

She cracked her knuckles and narrowed her eyes confrontationally. The black creature barely dodged her herculean punches. The rapid pinkette dropped to a crouch and hooked her foot against the back of its leg. She lifted her hooked foot and swept him off balance. Her toes pointed straight in the air as she boosted her leg into the air. Her heel came down on his back in a forceful motion causing a loud cracking noise to resonate within the dining hall.

_She possesses the same fighting style as that Sannin_… Tobi put a finger to his mask. _How does she manage to be accurate despite being intoxicated? _

The crowd erupted into a jubilant applause as Sakura dusted off her hands triumphantly. She smiled modestly and released a much needed sigh of relief. She didn't know why she even risked herself to confront that wretched monster. Perhaps she was innately inclined to play heroine or come to the aid of other in the face of peril. She quickly discarded the thoughts and scanned for Tobi. He merely raised his glass unfazed by the entire chaotic episode.

Sakura rested her hand on her large brow. "Tobi, we need to leave before anymore plants start attack…"

A shrill scream startled the dining hall occupants. Sakura widened her eyes and staggered forward as a white, pasty hand penetrated into her back. The white creature yanked his hand out and emitted a victorious grin. Blood dribbled from the corner of Sakura's mouth as she dropped to her knees shrieking.

"It hurts…It hurts!" Sakura whimpered to herself. She hadn't even noticed the white creature's presence. Had it morphed from the ground?

The black and white creature reunited into one multi-toned being.

"**How pathetic**." The black half said gazing upon the whimpering girl.

"The pain is absolutely unbearable…" Sakura whimpered again. She gazed up at the masked man simply watching her from the table. Her vision had been obscured by tears welling up in her eyes. "Am I going to…die?"

She slowly rose to her feet as a pinkish-red chakra flared from her wound. The chakra only seemed to intensify the pain emanating from her wound but it roused a pang of rage within her gut. Her right fist radiated the pinkish-red chakra as she curled her fingers vigorously penetrating the flesh of her palm with her own fingernails. Her fist seemed to feel heavier and more sluggish while she tried to punch the black and white creature in the gut. It easily dodged her slow movement. The very tip of her center knuckle barely brushed against the side of its arm. The pinkish-red chakra leapt straight to the point of contact and immediately consumed the creature's arm in a livid inferno. It yelped in agony as the pink chakra quickly disintegrated its right arm and rushed its way up to its shoulder. The creature continued hollering and disappeared into the floor.

"Did I win?" She said to herself.

Sakura dropped to her knees hugging her body within her arms. Tobi sauntered to her side as the peculiar chakra completely vanished.

"It hurts!" Sakura cried out while he inspected her wound.

"Sakura-chan, the wound is gone." He scrutinized her back.

She curled into a fetal position. "Please do something! I can't take it anymore!"

He scratched the crown of his head in a baffled manner. The strange chakra had healed her wound yet she still complained of the pain? Had her injury only healed cosmetically? He scoped her in his arms despite the Hot Water Daimyo's plea to commend her for her heroic feat. He ignored the political figurehead and returned to the hotel with Sakura.

"Does it still hurt?" Tobi placed Sakura on the left side of the bed and crawled in with her.

"Yes…" She rolled onto her side.

"Tobi'll fix it!" He said cheerily.

"How so?"

"Just relax." He lifted the back of her shirt and rubbed her skin gently.

The muscles of her back tensed in response to his touch.

"Relax." He said again.

He traced his fingers in circular motions until she finally released her tension. Her entire body began to relax as he gently messaged her back. She closed her eyes and quickly drifted to sleep in response to the gentle gesture. He rested his index finger in a single spot drawing out a faint radiance of the pinkish-red chakra. The chakra obediently followed the movement of his finger as he traced it in random patterns along her back.

_Interesting_…

* * *

She rubbed her aching cranium and slowly opened her eyes to the new day. She gave an inward gasp as her face and Tobi's mask had been uncomfortably close.

"Tobi! Your face is too close!"

He flicked her in the forehead and gave a slight titter. "Well, your forehead is taking up all the space on the bed."

That was it! She poked her finger through the hole in the mask until she reached something moist and squishy. Tobi winced and covered the hole with his hand. He sat up and yanked a lock of Sakura's hair until she cocked her head sideways. She sat up and drew her fist back to her hip. She clocked him in the chin knocking him off the bed.

"I'm not afraid to punch you again if you insult me!" She hissed at him from atop the bed.

He grasped the covers of the bed and gave a vigorous tug. He gave a conceited laugh as she rolled off the side of the bed.

"Baka!" She quickly recovered to her feet.

"Baka! Baka! Naruto-baka!" The parrot squawked in a raspy yet terrified voice as it flapped its wings frantically.

Sakura drew her fist back again and lunged for the irritating man. "Shannaro!"

She inhaled unexpectedly as something stopped the motion of her fist. Tobi wrapped his large fingers around her fist and twisted her wrist. She yelped loudly and struggled to free herself from his grasp. She seized the lamp off the nightstand and yanked the electrical cord from the socket. The pinkette hurled the lamp carelessly at his head. She furrowed her brow as the lamp shattered upon impacting the wall instead of striking her target. Shards of glass and porcelain littered the floor. Tobi had suddenly disappeared from sight. She took a step forward avoiding stepping on the stray fragments of glass and porcelain. Something seized her from behind and clutched her in an iron bear hug. Tobi managed to hold down her arms preventing her from using them to escape. She stomped on his foot repeatedly but he seemed to have no reaction to pain. He lifted her body causing her legs to leave the ground and prevent her from balancing. Sakura flailed her legs in the air in a futile manner until he slammed her onto the ground. She landed face first and thrashed violently as something put pressure on the back of her head. Tobi sat on top of her head and grasped onto her flailing legs.

"Tobi! Get your big fat ass off of me!" Sakura's voice was muffled by the floor.

"Huh?" Tobi cupped his hand behind his ear.

She spoke through a muffled voice yet again. "I swear to god!"

She arched her back in a forceful motion and struggled to roll onto her hip. He forced her head downward and her legs backward causing her to exert force beyond her own flexibility. He seemed to be amused by her strong and flexible tactics. She twisted her shoulder extending the reach of her arm until she grasped onto the leg of a wooden chair. She twisted her other shoulder in order to gain more leverage and strike him with the chair. He leapt to his feet liberating her from his suffocating and awkward hold. She staggered to her feet and swung the chair at him in an arbitrary manner. He dodged her sluggish, imprecise strikes and unhinged a picture frame off the wall above the bed. It was a bland portrait of a generic boat in a fancy frame. He blocked the motion of the chair with the frame almost _too_ skillfully. Since when was he so adept? Sakura pressed forward trying to disarm him with sheer strength. She struck harder and faster hoping the force of the chair would break his picture frame. He held his ground and blocked her strikes without being forced backward. They engaged in a shoving match— shoddy chair versus fancy picture frame. For being such a small, petite girl she was quite sturdy. He twisted the picture frame in between the backrest of the chair and her arms managing to disarm her. He slashed through the chair and pinned her up against the window of the hotel room. She glanced above her head shifting her weight to her toes. She leapt in the air and wrenched the curtain rod free from the wall. She twirled the curtain rod swiftly enabling her to hide behind the fluttering curtains and engaging him to back off. She sliced through his picture frame and advanced forward. The fluttering curtains were successful in shielding her body from his view but they also blocked his movements from her view.

"Katon: Gokakyuu no Jutsu!"

Sakura stifled a scream as the rapidly flapping curtains suddenly erupted into flames. She dropped the curtain rod inadvertently causing the flames to spread to the carpeting. He slowly ambled through the cackling flames in a predatory manner. Her heart thundered within her chest as she backed against the wall. Despite the searing heat in the room, a cold trickle of sweat chilled her brow. This wasn't Tobi…It couldn't be! Tobi was clumsy, awkward, and jovial but this man…exuded of pure evil and malice. He walked upright and took shorter, commanding strides unlike Tobi. Had Tobi's body been overcome by some type of evil spirit? She yearned to scream but it seemed as though the flames had sapped all of the moisture from the room. He clutched onto the surface of his mask and towered over her forebodingly.

"I win." The tone of his voice descended callously.


	6. Dichotomy

A/N: Apologies for the long wait! I hope you enjoy!

* * *

"Tobi! Tobi!" Sakura screeched vociferously. The immense heat only seemed to intensify the pain in her throat. "What's happened to you?"

He grasped her arm and yanked her closer. She struggled in his grasp although her efforts were rendered fruitless.

"I despised seeing you 'play' with Zetsu." His voice drew closer to her ear. "You should be playing with me instead."

Play? Zetsu? What was he talking about? His words only seemed to further terrify and baffle her.

"This isn't funny, Tobi!" Sakura cried out as she curled her fingers into fists. "You've watched that porno one too many times!"

He merely smirked beneath the mask as he clutched onto the edge with his hand.

"Why are you acting like this? This must be…it must be an evil spirit…" Sakura said to herself. It made perfect sense. The sudden dichotomous change in his personality was attributed to his body under the possession of an evil spirit. His naive and childish personality must have made him a vulnerable target for a malicious being.

Tobi clutched his skull and rested his cranium on Sakura's chest. She wrapped her arms around him compassionately as he gave an agonized groan.

"Please fight it, Tobi. I will help you in any way I can." Sakura whispered into his raven hair.

"Sakura…" His mask tilted up toward her solemn face. Her green eyes quivered as she parted her lips slightly open. "Only your touch can save me from the demon that dwells within my soul…"

He gently cupped her cheek within the palm of his hand and lifted his mask slightly. She could only see the outline of a chin and thin lips. His lips pressed against her own as his hands worked their way down to her waist. She interlaced her fingers behind the back of his neck and slowly leaned backward relying on him for balance. She internally blamed her lack of balance on her knees failing to support her weight. They felt anesthetized and almost amorphous as if they had morphed into jelly. Her cheeks seared with a tingling sensation of heat. She was probably blushing like a pining little school girl. He separated his lips from hers leaving a cool wet chill on the edge of her lips. He quickly slipped his mask back over his chin and stroked her sweltering red cheek. She yearned to see the warm expression in his eyes (or eye) behind that obstructive mask. Why did he have to be so insecure about his appearance? Had this inner demon skewed his face as well as his personality? Her eyes continued to quiver as she gazed at the bright orange mask. Her heartbeat began to thunder within her cranium. Underneath that mask was an innocent man suffering under the hands of an evil supernatural force.

"Sakura…" His voice said delicately. His tone suddenly shifted to one of derisiveness and mockery. "I'm just kidding."

Sakura widened her eyes in sheer disbelief.

"You _are_ fun to play with!"

Within a split second, her fist connected with the hard plastic lining of his mask. His head reeled backward yet he maintained his composure. The impact of her fist shook loose the tears welling within her lower eyelids. He traced his finger upon the point of impact. A small crack interrupted the smooth surface of the plastic mask.

"Don't do that to me!" She shouted vociferously. Her head snapped toward the door as she heard the soft footfalls of someone nearing their room. A small white envelope had been slipped underneath the crack of the door.

Sakura picked up the envelope and scanned through the letter inside. She quickly snatched up her bag and perched the Scarlet Macaw on her shoulder. Tobi simply watched her as she maneuvered around the flame engrossed room and pried the window open.

"What did the letter say? Where are you going?" He inquired.

"Away." She said bluntly. "And you better pay for the damage to the hotel."

She leapt out the window and darted to the main streets blending in with the crowd. Tobi scratched the crown of his head and immediately pursued her.

"Do you really think I care for hotel property?" He caught up to the hasty pinkette. "And why are you off in such a hurry?"

"I received a job offering." She pushed forward without catching a glance at him. "From here on, we part ways."

She released a gasp as he grasped her wrist firmly. "Don't tell me Sakura-chan can't take a joke."

Her eyes wandered down to the ground submissively. "You really scared me, Tobi. I have a feeling you can't be trusted…"

"I watched you fight that monster so passionately. You had such an alluring fire within your eyes." He spoke in an irritatingly high tone of voice. "I just wanted to impress Sakura-chan."

She didn't respond as she continued pressing through the crowd.

"Where are you going?" He suddenly teleported before her.

"Why does it matter to you? Why do you keep following me?"

He touched the scar on her brow covered by her hat. "You are the same as I am."

Sakura froze as her long pink tresses veiled her eyes. The corners of her mouth descended firmly. "I don't know what you mean…"

"You don't remember anything, do you?"

"No, I don't." She said admittedly.

His hand slid down to her shoulder. "Let me show you something…"

* * *

Sakura gasped as she had been sucked into some strange vortex with Tobi's eye as the epicenter.

She recognized the familiar environment as the forest outside Yugakure. She sat at the base of a large tree enveloped in the shadow of its large canopy.

"Sakura." Tobi's voice jolted her from her temporary daze. "You have also suffered the same fate, am I not correct?"

"Huh?" Sakura forced from the back of her throat.

Tobi suddenly unraveled his scarf and grasped he bottom hem of his shirt. He turned around facing his back toward her.

"What are you doing?" Sakura shrieked in surprise as he lifted up his shirt. She widened her eyes as he revealed a crimson red scar streaked across his back. He yanked his long dark hair from the strap of the mask and lifted it in a single fluid motion.

Sakura lowered her eyes modestly as if he had completely stripped himself bare. The pads of his fingers brushed the scar on her brow. A youthful, smooth face pressed its lips against her scar. Her large green orbs ventured up to the unmasked man kissing her brow. He had dark onyx eyes lined by slightly puffy eyelids.

"I was killed long ago in a battle against my rival. I'm nothing but a body of chakra hosting my former self and appearance. I yearned so desperately to live, I discovered a vessel I could inhabit."

"A vessel?" Sakura repeated inquisitively.

"Yes. The Dragon became my vessel…my host. Although my real body is dead, I have been able to continue existing despite my fatal wound." He shifted his eyes to her scar. "You inhabit the polar opposite of my host. You possess the Phoenix."

"Dragon? Phoenix? What?" Sakura backed away from him. "I don't understand."

"The Dragon and Phoenix are constituents of the natural world. They are similar to the bijuu but unrelated. They are also sentimental bodies of chakra but unlike the bijuu they host human spirits within their bodies. A bijuu inhabits a human in contrast to a human inhabiting the Dragon or Phoenix."

"So does that mean…I'm really dead? I'm not actually Sakura but instead the spirit of Sakura in this Phoenix thing?" Sakura pounded her fist against her chest.

"Essentially…" Tobi answered dully.

Sakura forced a loud cackle. "Ok, Tobi! You can stop with the jokes now!"

He narrowed his charcoal black eyes. "I'm not joking."

"So I guess I'm dead, right?" She clenched her teeth together as she emitted a pained smile. Tears dripped from her eyes. "And I don't even know how I died…"

He caught her as she sobbed frantically into his bare chest. Her petite body trembled vigorously within his hold. His lips brushed the lobe of her ear as he whispered delicately. "Don't worry, Sakura. Together we can establish a world of truth, not lies."

He brushed his long locks away from his eye and grasped the envelope that had been delivered to her. He squinted his eye and scanned the tiny font on the cover:

_To the pink haired girl with the parrot_

_From Sabu- Master of Enka_


	7. Lascivious

A/N: Just a reminder…This fic is rated M for a reason.

* * *

"What kind of job offer did you receive?" Tobi inquired as she scanned through the letter once again.

Sakura remained silent as she intended to drown out the volume of his voice by immersing her mind in the text before her eyes. She couldn't rid her mind of the dejection accompanying the shocking news of her death. Perhaps the job offer would provide her with the opportunity to derail her mind from her miserable state and enrich herself in a new experience.

"Sakura? Hello?" Tobi furrowed his brow suspiciously.

"Oh." Sakura forced a grin. "A man named Sabu is interested in my talent and potentially wants to take me in as an apprentice. He says that his current student lacks…promise."

Tobi seemed merely indifferent to the details of the offer.

"I'm going to go change out of these clothes. They smell of ash…" Sakura slung her bag over her shoulder and ambled off. "And don't follow me!"

He watched her until she disappeared from his line of vision. He pressed his palm into the ground and stepped back as the head and neck of the two-toned creature morphed from beneath the surface of the earth.

"**You called us?**" The black half spoke in a cold tone of voice.

Tobi's face contorted into a deep grimace as he scrutinized the open flesh wounds consuming the black half's neck. "You look terrible."

"**That damn girl's chakra took out my arm and left me with this permanent wound. The wounds won't heal over either**." The black half of the creature spat. "**She disrupted my chakra flow and mitotic cell growth in the areas that chakra touched.**"

"Hyper-resonance"

"Huh?" The white half squinted its feral yellow eye.

"That chakra was resonating at an unusually high frequency. It eradicated your body's natural rhythms in the areas of contact. Separate from your other half and clean those wounds before you succumb to sepsis. I also have a task for you, White Zetsu."

"I'm listening."

He held the letter before the white half of the creature. "I want you to investigate this address and let me know if it's worth my time."

"Will do."

"**Farewell**."

He didn't bother watching the monster retreat back into the soil. For now, they would venture on a slight detour.

* * *

"Why are we here?" Sakura harried him for the fourth time as they rested near the base of a large waterfall centered between two large opposing statues.

"I wanted to take you somewhere special to enjoy some sightseeing." Tobi gave an amiable smile as Sakura's emerald eyes panned the two colossal statues.

"Tobi…" Sakura clasped her hands together. Her voice wavered tentatively. "The statues are damaged…"

The opposing monuments both sported samurai apparel and each clasped the hilt of a sword while raising the index and middle fingers. They seemed to have suffered severe wear and damage near the feet. Both statues seemed to bear long horizontal indentations as if they had withstood the repercussions of an intense battle. Sakura stood petrified as she heard a high pitched shouting noise. The voice had unquestionably belonged to a prepubescent boy. She couldn't distinguish anything intelligible but the voice seemed to radiate a bright orange aura at the foot of the statue on the right. The orange aura dispersed into the air like the circular ripples on a body of water. Her eyes followed the orange waves of sound intermingling with the gentle current of air. Another masculine voice shouted back emitting deep blue waves of color from the foot of the other statue. This voice was deeper and more mature sounding than the opposing voice. The voices suddenly seemed to escalate in volume causing the orange and blue waves of sound to resonate violently. The surrounding environment began to lose transparency as the opposing waves intermingled and clashed as interfering forces of color and sound. Her inner ear had suddenly become subject to the intense clashing vibrations and bellowing voices consuming her senses.

_What's happening to me? Why do I feel like I want to cry…? _

She wanted to squeeze her eyes shut and cover her ears but her balance had unexpectedly become severely compromised. Once again her eyes rolled upward toward the blurred skies as her head tilted up and toward the left. She felt an uncomfortable heat sear beneath the surface of her skin. Her stomach felt as though it was flip-flopping out of control while that unbearable pressure seized her inner ear.

Tobi caught her petite body and clutched her against his chest for balance. She didn't even seem to notice his presence as she began to slip out of consciousness.

"Another vestibular episode…?" He whispered to himself carrying her toward the bank of the large pool of water.

Splash!

"Tobi!" Sakura shouted as she had been completely immersed in the freezing cold waters.

He folded his arms towering above her on the bank of the waters. "You were beginning to space out on me."

"You jerk! Now my clothes are soaked!"

He weaved side to side as she hurled random branches and river debris toward his head vengefully. He chuckled and pointed at her mockingly. She grasped his ankle and yanked him forcefully into the chilly waters. She splashed water in his face and gave a loud derisive cackle. The corners of his mouth descended into an unamused, spiteful scowl. He grasped her scalp and forced her head beneath the surface of the water. Sakura gazed up at the blurred blue sky beyond the plane of the water and waved her arms frantically as she choked and spluttered. Her gasps became increasingly staccato and desperate unable to free herself from Tobi's overbearing hold. Her upper body popped forcefully out of the waters as he released his hold on her. She took a much needed frantic gasp of air and began paddling back toward the shore. Her body was suddenly yanked back toward the center of the pool. He grasped her ankle and continued to pull her away from the shore. She struggled to escape his tugging by swimming in the opposite direction. She outstretched her arms and sucked in her stomach to attain a more streamline form in efforts to increase her leverage in the water. Her attempt to swim back to the shore was merely futile as she could not overcome his strength. She bent her seized leg to draw herself closer to him and kicked him upside the chin with her free leg. Instead of wincing, he grasped onto her other leg and clamped her legs in between his arms and ribs. She wrapped her arms around his neck bowing her body toward him as he reached in for a kiss. It was a peculiar position to display affection but she couldn't help but tremble in delight.

She blinked forcefully. Her body had suddenly become swathed in a lukewarm current of air. "Huh? Where are we?"

"I teleported us to the top of the statue. You were starting to get cold." Tobi said as he gazed at the spiky haired statue adjacent to the one they were settled atop of.

"My clothes are absolutely soaked. Turn around and don't look!" Sakura grasped the hem of her saturated shirt.

Tobi turned around and began to strip as well. She stripped down to her bra and panties casting her clothes aside to dry. Tobi removed his shirt, pants, and scarf until he was solely in his white briefs. Sakura widened her eyes in shock as she flashed a glance at Tobi's nearly bare body. He was lean yet rippled in gorgeously chiseled muscle illuminated by the droplets of water lining his skin. She hated to admit but he seemed well endowed…down there…How did he manage to possess such a stunning physique? He couldn't help but gawk at the girl's petite body lined with newly blossoming curves. Her nipples were curiously peaking beneath the thin fabric of her black bra.

"Don't stare!" Sakura's voice hissed. She couldn't help but mentally berate herself for being a hypocrite.

They sat back to back on the head of the statue of the smooth haired man. Sakura hugged her shivering torso with her arms. Tobi stretched his legs and raked them back toward his body. He shifted uncomfortably as his underwear had become increasingly tight. She gave an unrestrained gasp of utter bewilderment and surprise. Her breasts suddenly fell free exposed to the cool stream of air.

"Tobi!" Sakura twisted around securing a single arm against her nude chest.

He dangled the black bra by the tiny hooks and carelessly cast it over the side of the statue. She helplessly watched her undergarment fall into mere nothingness. She shifted her gaze meeting his deep, dark eyes. Those black eyes radiated the same fire and malice she had observed back in the burning hotel room. Part of her wished to flee yet her curiosity yearned to witness the events to follow. He parted her thighs with his knee and seized her wrists.

"Tobi…please…" She cried weakly.

Her voice evidently lacked the conviction to display her protest as he ignored her soft cry. His tongue traced her neck leaving a tingling sensation on each of the bumps of her trachea up to the tip of her chin. She couldn't help but emit a soft coo while he shifted himself to gain more leverage. He cupped her breast within the palm of his hand and groped the soft tissue leisurely. She didn't possess huge, ridiculous sized breasts nor was she flat-chested…simply average for a girl of her petite frame. He wrapped his lips around the supple skin and tickled the hardened surface of her nipple with the tip of his tongue. She merely lie beneath him immobile and hushed like a frail doll. She arched her back and uttered a soft moan as his tongue continued to tickle the edges of her nipple. Her legs inadvertently curled upward to her chest causing his expression to firm into a scowl.

"Relax…"

She wished to apologize but her lips failed to vocalize anything comprehensible. She hadn't noticed he had already freed his animated member while she lay beneath him without contributing any motions of her own. He grasped the edges of her underwear and guided them down her legs and off her ankles. She was jolted by the sudden thrust of something in her sacred crevice. She screamed vociferously as the sharp pain relayed throughout her entire body. She bit down on her lip struggling to stifle the tears from leaving her eyes. The hard stone surface beneath her flesh didn't ease the discomfort. Her hips attempted to roll sideways away from his vigorous thrusting. She sobbed loudly finally catching his attention and ceasing the excruciating penetration.

"Please stop…I can't take it anymore…it hurts so bad…" She forced her words from beneath her choked sobbing. "I'm so sorry, Tobi…"

"Relax, Sakura. It will get easier each time. I promise to be gentle." He worked her small fingers around his own. "Just hold onto my hand."

She inhaled deeply and sunk her fingernails into his knuckles creating crescent shaped indents in his flesh. He continued driving himself into her no softer than he had initially done. She squeezed her eyes shut releasing the tension dwelling within her limbs. His motions gradually became more rhythmical allowing her to release her reservations and invite the wave of euphoria uniting their bodies into one entity.

* * *

Sakura lay on her back sprawled out on the warm stone beneath her skin. Tobi rested beside her twirling her drying pink hair around his index finger. He wished to share more sensual and exotic escapades with the young girl. His brow furrowed at the thought of the singer man wishing to take her in as an apprentice. He would simply monopolize time with the girl and ruin their chances of sharing more experiences together. But, it would be simple to concoct an excuse not to venture to this Sabu guy.

"Tobi, do you think you can retrieve my bag? It's down there near the shore." Sakura hoisted her body upper upright supporting her weight on the palms of her hand. "I think I have an extra bra in there."

He quickly slipped his clothes back on and teleported to the pool beneath the monument.

Sakura worked herself back into her dried clothing. She gazed at the adjacent statue of the spiky haired man facing toward her location. He did look a bit like Tobi…she squinted to sharpen her vision…sorta…She pondered to herself why he had dragged her to this particular location. Did she really lose her virginity on the head of a statue in the middle of nowhere? She had hoped to lose her virginity someplace more…enchanting.

"Hey…" A white, pasty head emerged from beneath the earth.

"What is it, Zetsu?" Tobi turned his attention to the white creature.

"Hehe." Zetsu chuckled softly. "That address is definitely worth your time."

He assimilated back into the earth without a word more. Tobi gave a slight smirk. "Hn. Now you've got me curious. I wish you wouldn't leave out important details, Zetsu."

* * *

Sakura followed beside Tobi as they neared a small cottage in a desolate forest. She poked her nose above Tobi's shoulder in an attempt to read the address.

"I think we're here." Tobi slipped back on his orange mask.

They cautiously ascended up a small porch and knocked on the door. A short, middle aged man wearing a cream colored robe answered the door. He had dark brown hair done up in a traditional bun and bizarre rounded eyes beneath a pair of large bushy eyebrows.

"Welcome, Sakura. I am Sabu, Master of Enka." The man stated courteously.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Master Sabu." Sakura smiled pleasantly.

He suddenly fixed his round eyes on the strange masked man. "Eh? I didn't know you had company."

"I'm Tobi! I'm Sakura-chan's bodyguard!" He slung his arm around Sakura's shoulder.

Sakura cringed internally as Tobi spoke in the high-pitched, goofy tone of voice. Why had he reverted back to that obnoxious personality? Was Tobi insecure around strangers? Is that the reason he wore the mask again and spoke in that silly voice?

"Well, you and your companion are welcome to stay. I'd like you to meet my student." Sabu glanced behind his shoulder as a tall dark-skinned man emerged from behind him. "This is Killer Bee."

Tobi widened his eyes to clarify his vision. He grinned delightedly behind the obscurity of the mask. _Just my luck…_


	8. A Cappella

"Hello, Killer Bee-san." Sakura smiled amiably.

"That's Killer Bee-_sama_ to you!" The dark skinned man folded his arms in an abrupt manner.

Tobi's eye narrowed as he flickered a glance to Sakura's downcast face. She shifted her eyes toward the ground avoiding Killer Bee's stern countenance. Sakura's pink eyelashes suddenly flipped upward revealing her widened green orbs. She froze stock still absorbing the strange rumbling noise engrossing the room which promptly began to escalate in volume.

"Ponta, no!" Sabu shouted as an oversized raccoon lunged for the pinkette and masked man.

The giant raccoon curled its dark lips baring its ominous canines. Involuntarily, Sakura raised her arms shielding the ferocious raccoon from view. Tobi grasped Sakura by the waist as the giant raccoon sprung in their direction. The raccoon suddenly phased through Tobi and Sakura's body careening into the wall behind them. A slight gasp escaped from Sakura's lips as the raccoon's collision with the wall seemed to rattle the entire structure of the cottage.

"Ponta! What has gotten into you?" Sabu exclaimed as he rushed toward the dazed raccoon's body.

_Bee…Bee, are you paying attention to this?_

"Huh?" Killer Bee said to himself.

_Bee, be on your guard!_ A demonic oxen creature said within his mind. _Even the raccoon senses it…the malevolent chakra stemming from that man…_

"Please forgive me. Ponta has never been rude to my guests before." Sabu bowed his head slightly.

_That man…that man is Uchiha Madara! He is the one who manipulated the Kyuubi twice. He is likely after us. I have no doubts about it…Bee…are you paying attention to me? _

"Ya ya…evil chakra. Be on my guard." Killer Bee answered halfheartedly.

_Bee you'd better heed my warning or we'll both end up in serious trouble! _The Hachibi sighed in frustration as the Jinchuuriki seemed to disregard his words of caution.

* * *

Sabu, Killer Bee, Sakura, and Tobi sat in a circular formation around a campfire.

"To be a revered singer you must command pitch, rhythm, and most importantly passion. Let's start with you, Sakura-chan. Show us your talents." Sabu made a sweeping motion with his arm in Sakura's direction.

She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes placidly.

_ame ni nureta hoho wa  
namida no nioi ga shita__  
yasashii manazashi no  
tabibito*_

_shizuka ni hibiiteru_  
_natsukashii ongaku_  
_omoidasenai kioku_  
_samayou_

Tobi gazed into the cackling flames dancing and receding in accordance with the gentle night breeze. The ethereal tone of her voice sent a relay of shivers down his spine as her voice began to crescendo and wane continuously throughout the song. The song was melancholy and slow yet somewhat soothing. Sakura finished her pneumatic euphony and inhaled promptly after allowing her voice to trail off on the last note. She cast an expectant glance at the bushy browed Enka master. His large eyebrows descended down upon his round eyes crinkling his forehead in flagrant disappointment.

"Are you trying to showcase your talents or lull me to sleep?" Sabu folded his arms bitterly. "Where was the vibrato? The rolls? The range? I asked you to show me your talents not put me to sleep!"

"I'm sorry…" Sakura lowered her head submissively. "I just wanted to sing something simple and beautiful…"

"Let me show you how it's really done." Sabu inhaled dramatically as if he had been submerged beneath a body of water for an extended period of time.

_Sakura sakura_

_Yayoi no sorawa**_

Tobi and Sakura cringed inwardly as the man sung excruciatingly loudly and nasally. Sakura strained a smile despite the wavering and painful pitch of his voice as he closed his eyes and sang with a forced passion. She glanced back at Tobi then to the Enka master clutching his fingers into a fist while his entire body quivered awkwardly. Tears streamed from his eyes as he clenched his teeth together and wavered on the last note. Tobi scowled beneath his mask blatantly agitated by the man's verbal assault upon his eardrums.

_This will __all be over soon_…Tobi declared mentally.

"Now you try, Bee." Sabu turned to the dark skinned man.

"Yeah…" Killer Bee said affirmatively clenching his fingers into fists at his sides.

_Sak__uuuraaaaa sakuuuraaaaaa_

_Yayoi no sorawa_

...WHEEE!

He suddenly pumped the "rock on" hand sign in the air as he shouted feverishly. He had sung even more painfully nasally and out of tune than Sabu. Sakura, Tobi, and Sabu simultaneously reeled backwards as if they had been struck in the gut by his obnoxious voice. Sakura's face had become sickly pallid while her mouth hung open in utter trepidation. Multiple trickles of sweat roll descended from Sabu's brow as he struggled to maintain his composure and repress the revulsion from gracing his face.

…_very very soon…_Tobi added within his mind. He clasped his right hand over the hole in his mask as if trying to curb his eye from exploding.

"Err…let's move on." Sabu brushed off his robe. "A singer falls flat if they do not sing with conviction in their heart. Bee, what do you think of when you perform?"

"Hmm…" Bee ruffled his flaxen hair within his fingers. "I don't really think of anything in particular to be honest…"

Sabu glanced to Sakura. "And you?"

Sakura put a finger to her lips. "When I sing I think of someone who is no longer with me…someone I have lost forever…I don't really know who specifically but the sadness inspires me to project my passion into my voice."

The corners of her mouth suddenly drew upward into a poignant yet serene smile. Sabu raised his hand and sighed forcefully. "Alright, that is enough for today. We'll continue tomorrow."

The group disbanded and headed back inside the cottage. Sakura and Tobi shared a small room inside the lodge. Sakura laid out two mats on the floor and retrieved blankets and pillows from Sabu's closet. She lie down on the mat beside Tobi and rolled onto her side facing toward him.

"I don't want to stay here…" She heaved a disheartened sigh.

"Huh?" Tobi shifted from his back onto his side. "Why?"

"I don't think Sabu and Killer Bee are too fond of me. I don't feel very comfortable here…"

"They are just jealous of your talent. Give it a few days. I'm sure things will look up."

She furrowed her brow as he reached out and twirled a strand of her hair around his finger. He had seemed terribly bored and uninterested during Sabu's session today. He didn't seem to express any interest in music. Why had he suddenly become interested in coming to Sabu's residence and what reason did he have to want to stay longer?

She rolled onto her back staring up at the ceiling. "Fine…Maybe they'll loosen up if I give it some time."

His hand slid down to the curve of her cheeks as he slowly inched closer to her body. She pushed his hand aside and recoiled away from him. He removed his mask and sat up gazing down at her defiant countenance.

"What's with you?"

Sakura crossed her arms as his onyx eyes conveyed his palpable frustration. "I'm still in pain from yesterday. And besides…I'm quite disappointed."

"Disappointed with what?" His face contorted into a deep scowl.

"That my first time was wasted on top of a rock in the middle of nowhere."

"Wasted? Would you have been happier in a five star hotel?"

"No. That's not it." Sakura shook her head. "There's no intimacy…I hardly know anything about you. Who are you? Who is Tobi?"

She widened her eyes and listened attentively. His expression suddenly hardened as he sat upright staring down at his hands cupped within his lap. "Well, I guess it's time to tell you…"

He spoke in the higher tone of voice and gave a slight laugh. "…Tobi's favorite food is inarizushi…umm favorite hobby is falconry…astrological sign is Capricorn..."

He gave an amused chuckle to her displeasure. "I'm just kidding."

Sakura sat up promptly. Her eyebrow twitched involuntarily as she suppressed the urge to clout Tobi in the face. "I told you to stop doing that!"

He laughed in a carefree manner that seemed to vaguely assuage her foul mood. She buried her face within the palm of her hand as he continued laughing jovially.

"Ugh! You're impossible!" She flopped back onto the floor. "I'm going to sleep already."

Tobi frowned as she swaddled herself in a cocoon of blankets and turned away from him. He was already beginning to regret allowing her to snub him in such a manner. However, he quickly brushed off that thought as he contemplated capturing the Hachibi. Tomorrow night, he would be one step closer to implementing his ultimate scheme.

* * *

The following day, Sabu had assigned Sakura and Killer Bee the task of writing lyrics in a short period of time. Killer Bee watched Sakura argue with Tobi as he poked fun at the lyrics she had written down on a notepad.

He glanced down at his own notepad and grimaced. Most of his lyrics had been crossed out as he quickly scribbled down and rejected his ideas. He raised his pen in the air as he had conjured an innovative line. He quickly scribbled the lyrics which had emerged in his head.

_Girl, I been shaking, sticking and moving trying to get you and that…__***_

"Trying to get to you and that…" He repeated to himself.

_H__ey Bee! Are you listening to me?_ The Hachibi shouted within his mind. _Have you noticed the sudden intensity in Uchiha Madara's chakra? We're in major trouble! Hey…Bee…?_

"Ugh…What else am I trying to get to? Damn it…"

He scratched out that line and sighed in frustration.

_I'm serious, Bee! You'd better put your head on straight or we'll both perish!_ The Hachibi shouted louder as the rapper seemed to ignore his warnings.

"This is harder than I thought…" Bee fanned himself using the notepad. "Coming up with lyrics under pressure ain't easy."

_Lord help us_….The Hachibi groaned in sheer desperation.

Killer Bee watched as Sakura clonked Tobi on the top of the head and shouted. "Shannaro!"

"Shannaro?" Bee recited back to himself as he wrote on his notepad. He smirked triumphantly and continued to jot down lyrics on his pad.

After being dismissed from Sabu's session, Killer Bee headed to his room to continue developing new lyrics. He had received praise from Master Sabu on his latest set of lyrics but he required a muse for his inspiration.

Tobi brought a tray of pleasantly smelling chamomile tea to his and Sakura's room. Sakura nodded her head appreciatively and grasped the handle of the sweltering hot tea cup. A loud rattling noise suddenly startled her causing her to set down the cup. She rose to her feet and answered the door.

"Killer Bee-sama?" She tilted her head inquisitively.

"Sakura-chan." Bee responded. "I need your help. Do you mind looking over these lyrics?"

"Alright." Sakura followed him as he led her down the hall to his room.

Tobi watched as she disappeared into his room. He sat alone in his room waiting for Sakura's return. He repeatedly peered at the clock as the hours seemed to pass without Sakura's return. The short hand had passed the midnight hour yet Sakura had not departed the rapper's room. He heard a muffled giggling noise emanate from Bee's room. Sakura opened the door laughing and giggling beside the dark skinned man. She waved goodnight to him and headed back to her room.

"What were you doing?" Tobi inquired.

"Oh, Killer Bee-sama had asked me to look over the lyrics he had written. I helped him edit them and came up with a few melodies he could work with. He said we should combine my singing with his rapping to create a new style….don't know what to call it though. I guess that's another task for tomorrow." She crawled beneath the blanket and stretched her arms as she yawned softly. "He really is an interesting and caring man once you get to know him."

"Is that so…?" Tobi muttered flatly.

Sakura spent the following nights alongside Bee writing lyrics and coming up with melodies to put together a song. She progressively spent longer durations of time in his room. Tobi struggled to restrain his fury and impatience as her time spent with Killer Bee prevented him from confronting the Jinchuuriki. Sakura wore her hair in low lying pigtails as Killer Bee told her it better suited her style. She had become more comfortable and giggly in his presence much to Tobi's displeasure.

"Tobi, is everything alright?" Sabu asked as the masked man offered him a cup of tea.

"Hn." Tobi grunted indifferently.

Sabu grasped the cup and shook his head. "Those two make quite a dynamic team. Perhaps their new style will be a big hit in the youth culture. I have to admit…they do have potential together."

He gazed up at Tobi as he remained silent. "You seem quite upset. You are simply just Sakura-chan's bodyguard, am I correct?"

"It's none of your concern…" Tobi answered callously as he ambled off.

Sabu glanced at the steaming cup of tea and poured it into the sink.

"Thank you Tobi!" Sakura sipped the soothing smelling tea.

"Hopefully you won't feel so tired when you write your song." Tobi patted her on the shoulder.

Her eyelids began to descend as her body wavered back and forth. He caught her petite body as she collapsed into his arms. He placed her body on the mat and silently slipped out the door. He was quickly confronted by the Enka master and the enormous raccoon awaiting him in the hallway.

Sabu brandished a massive axe. "You spiked the tea."

"So you didn't drink it…not a problem. I'll just kill you." A bright red light emitted from the hole in his mask.

The gigantic raccoon lunged at Tobi's body as he stood his ground. He quickly summoned something into his hand as the raccoon's claws rapidly inched near him. The raccoon gave a shrill cry as its body merely phased through Tobi. Sabu widened his round eyes as a pool of dark red blood lined the floor. The raccoon staggered a few paces and collapsed causing the entire cottage to tremor. A long steel blade had been impaled into the raccoon's chest.

"Ponta!" Sabu cried out as Tobi sauntered ominously toward him.

He leapt backward and raised his giant axe. "You're after Killer Bee, aren't you?"

"Very good. How long did it take you to figure out the obvious?"

"I won't let you near him!" Sabu hacked the axe down upon Tobi's skull.

Something halted the downward motion of his axe. Tobi blocked the enormous blade from splitting his skull with a single finger.

"What…?" Sabu hissed in utter bewilderment. "Impossible!"

"Get out of my way." Tobi stated harshly.

Sabu gasped as a strange vortex seemed to pull him and the dead raccoon toward Tobi's eye. He struggled to ground himself by driving the axe into the floor but to no avail as the force of the vortex sucked him into another dimension. Tobi pressed forward down the hallway to Killer Bee's room. He forced open the door while the Jinchuuriki had been working on lyrics at his desk. Bee slowly turned his head toward Tobi and scowled.

"Excuse me…knock first!"

_Bee__! Get out of the cottage!_ The Hachibi roared within his mind.

Within a matter of seconds, Killer Bee had blown a hole in the wall of his bedroom creating an opening to the outside of the cottage. He drew multiple swords as he crouched into a defensive stance. Bee planted his foot into the earth preparing to spring at the hostile intruder.

_Stop! Don't engage in hand to hand combat with him or he'll suck us in._ The Hachibi cried out. _We can only engage in long range combat. Just let me out. I'll end this quickly._

"No! If I let you out, you'll end up destroying the area and we may risk killing Sakura-chan and Master Sabu." Bee explained to the oxen bijuu.

"I've already gotten rid of Sabu but Sakura is still inside unconscious." Tobi grinned beneath his mask.

"You're mad cuz you think I stole your girl, huh?" Bee dropped the swords and folded his arms tauntingly. "Well that girl ain't my type but she will be my singer. She don't deserve no mothafucka like you!"

"Sorry to crush your hopes and dreams but she can't be your singer if you're captured." Tobi smirked as he added. "Besides, you're a talentless idiot."

"You dissin me?" Bee raised his fist in the air as he spat furiously.

The Hachibi spoke within his conscious. _Don't let him get to your or else you'll just end up screwing this up. _

"I got this…" Bee said to the Hachibi as he scribbled something down on his notepad. He inserted chakra into his pen and hurled it in Tobi's direction.

The pen passed through Tobi's head and wedged itself into the trunk of a tree. Tobi glanced back to the pen and then to Bee. "You charged that pen with lightning chakra. Quite impressive."

"I'll show you something impressive!" Bee roared as his arm transformed into an enormous tentacle.

Tobi easily dodged Killer Bee's tentacle as he repeatedly attempted strike his opponent with the monstrous appendage. Bee gave a loud bellow as he transformed his other arm into a tentacle. The masked man effortlessly dodged the two whipping tentacles. Tobi leapt onto the roof of the cottage awaiting another strike from Bee's tentacles.

Bee halted the motion of his tentacle before it could crash through the roof of the house. Tobi shifted his gaze up to the tentacle hovering above him and released a derisive laugh. "Why did you stop?"

"Bastard…" Bee gnashed his teeth together.

_You have to lead him away from the cottage_. The oxen demon advised him.

"Right." He nodded in agreement. He pumped his fist in the air and called out to Tobi. "You want me? Come get me!"

He ran a couple paces deeper into the woods until he noticed Tobi's reluctance to engage in pursuit. Tobi leaned against the side of the cottage lazily. His voice ascended in a mockingly inquisitive tone. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Huh?" Bee observed the man as he turned his back to him and faced toward the lodge.

Tobi raised his mask slightly and inhaled deeply. "Katon: Gokakyuu no Jutsu!"

"Shit!" Bee gasped frightfully as the cottage suddenly erupted into flames. "He really _does_ intend to kill her!"

_It's a trap, Bee_. The Hachibi stated bluntly.

Bee watched helplessly as the inferno rapidly consumed the dry wood structure of the cottage. He clutched his chest and roared furiously as the Eight-tailed Version 2 cloak shrouded his body. He grasped onto Tobi with an extended chakra arm-like appendage and vigorously hurled his body into the woods. He darted to the burning lodge and slammed his forehead into the wall.

"Headbutt!"

He managed to force open a hole into the lodge and crawl inside. He scanned the hallway for the pinkette frantically as the flames had quickly begun devour the interior of the cottage.

"Sakura! Sakura-chan! Where are you?" He broke down the door into what he vaguely recognized as her chamber.

The burning room was hardly recognizable. A thick, dark veil of smoke obscured his vision and prevented him from breathing easily. He lifted the multiples layers of blanketing laid out on the floor but to no avail. The pink haired girl had gone missing.

"Looking for something?" A callous voice spoke behind him.

The masked man held the unconscious girl's body upright with a kunai pressed up against her jugular vein. Bee widened his eyes in horror as the crimson eye glowing from beneath the mask squinted in a seemingly delighted manner.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the long delay. Don't kill me please…

*Lyrics to You Are My Love by Makino Yui

**Lyrics to the Japanese folk song Sakura Sakura

***Do I…Do I really need to explain this one…? XD


	9. Acquisition

Bee seemed to be paralyzed completely as he gazed at the masked man holding the unconscious girl hostage. His mouth contorted into an incredulous scowl as the fiery red chakra of the Hachibi shrouded his body. His eyes scanned the assailant up and down scrutinizing the situation for any slight chance of successfully rescuing the hostage.

"If you don't surrender then Sakura's life shall be forfeit." He pressed the kunai forcefully against her jugular vein.

Bee bit his lip as the color seemed to slowly drain from the surface of Sakura's flesh. She resembled a flaccid porcelain doll merely being held upright by the constrictive arm of her hostage taker. His eyes ventured from Sakura's face up to Tobi's neck just above the crown of her head.

_There is just enough clearance…_Killer Bee pondered to himself. _There is just enough clearance to take out his head with the Lariat without hurting Sakura if I can act fast enough…_

_That is a terrible idea! Don't…_The oxen bijuu was promptly hushed by its Jinchuuriki.

_Quiet! I have to time this just right…_Bee furrowed his brow as he scrupulously calculated his impending assault.

Tobi widened his demonic crimson eye as the Jinchuuriki flexed his arm and lunged straight for his throat.

"Lariat!" Bee's bicep rapidly edged closer to Tobi's exposed throat.

The Hachibi roared within the stubborn Jinchuuriki's mind._ Stop! It's a trap! The girl is already d…!_

Bee's body had been forced forward into some type of powerful vortex originating from Tobi's right eye. He struggled to fight the force of the current but to no avail. His own forward momentum from his attack had only abetted the vortex in drawing in his body. Sakura's body plummeted to the floor as a burst of flesh and blood coated the wall of the burning cottage. Tobi covered his eye with his left hand finally having fully absorbed the Jinchuuriki into his space-time jutsu. He glanced at the right half of his body bitterly surveying the damage Bee's attack had done. His right shoulder and arm had been blown off as a result of Bee's lariat.

"Well that was highly convenient." He chuckled to himself. "It was a shame you weren't aware of the fact that I cannot kill someone who is already dead."

A portion of his ribcage had also gone missing and was swiftly beginning to seep a dark chakra into murky smoke of the fiery lodge. His gaze lifted to a vibrantly colored conspicuous figure perched atop the bookcase. The Scarlet Macaw's tiny beady eyes peered down on him in a presumably prying manner.

"The bird…" He hissed beneath his breath. "…it saw everything…"

The multicolored bird produced a strident braying noise as a kunai penetrated its breast. The bird swayed sideways and plummeted from the summit of the bookcase onto the floor. He carried the cataleptic girl underneath his left arm and departed the burning cottage in search of temporary refuge. He meandered into the forest and laid Sakura's body on a soft grassy surface. He pressed his palm into the earth and summoned the white anthropomorphic creature.

"What happened this time?" The white Zetsu cocked his eyebrow skeptically as he emerged from beneath the soil.

"Became tangible in order to absorb the Hachibi. Now make me a new arm." He stated impatiently while the black chakra rapidly seeped from his missing limbs.

"Looks like you need more than just an arm…" Zetsu interjected flatly. His eyes flittered to the unconscious pinkette strewn on the grass immediately garnering a scowl from the white creature. "Why is she here?"

Tobi uttered a frail laugh. He pressed his hand against his damaged ribcage emitting a pinkish-red chakra from the palm of his hand.

"That chakra!" Zetsu widened his saffron eyes. He watched as the pinkish-red chakra regenerated new tissue growth almost instantly repairing the damage done to his ribcage.

Tobi sighed as the chakra dissipated before he could regenerate his arm. "Hmph. I didn't take enough from her…"

"How did you acquire that chakra?" Zetsu inquired.

"From the girl of course. I won't go into the details of how I extracted it from her." He gave a slight smirk beneath the mask. "But I still need a new arm."

"So that chakra has the power of regeneration?"

"The Phoenix can regenerate new tissue growth but it cannot tolerate cells transfused from anyone other than its inhabitant…otherwise it will expel its inhabitant from its body. On the other hand, the Dragon is not capable of regeneration and I must rely on the transplantation of foreign tissue in order to repair this body."

Zetsu shook his head. "Seems easier to just acquire the Phoenix chakra."

"Although it may be capable of healing and regenerating it seems to possess an incredibly low tolerance for pain. I also wouldn't be able to acquire the Shodai's cells or transplant new eyes without succumbing to rejection if I were to inhabit the Phoenix."

"So then what are you planning to do with her?"

"Hn." He merely grunted. Zetsu furrowed his brow inquiringly. Tobi's demeanor seemed to suggest a nuance of amusement as his fingers reached for his chin pensively.

"I knew I shouldn't have relied on that kid to get the job done." He cupped his chin within the fingers of his left hand. "I will devise a punishment for him later…"

Zetsu's head snapped back to the unresponsive girl. "Won't that girl be waking up soon?"

"I gave her enough GHB* to take her out for an entire day." He stated as he lifted a small empty vile from his pocket. "Such a dosage would be lethal to a mortal. She won't die but she will be quite sick when she awakens."

"Hmph. What now?"

"Go to Konoha and inform Sasuke that I shall be arriving soon. Make sure he and his team are prepared by the time I arrive. In the meantime, I will be taking a quick detour." He stepped toward the white creature and flashed a glance at the black chakra seeping from his disintegrated right arm. "But first, I still need that arm."

* * *

Sakura vomited a second time since she had awakened. She had felt sickly dehydrated and was plagued by a strong salty taste overwhelming the pallet of her mouth. Tobi handed her a filled canteen of water as she collapsed onto her back.

"Tobi, where are we? Where are Master Sabu and Killer Bee-sama?" She asked in a hoarse, frail voice.

"We were attacked by rogue ninja. I managed to get you to safety but Sabu and Killer Bee did not make it."

"They didn't make it…?" Sakura's lips parted open. Twin trails of tears escaped from her glazed jade eyes streaking the sides of her pallid face. She stifled a whimper from the back of her throat and rolled onto her side burying her face within the refuge of her hands.

Tobi remained silent as he watched the girl round her back and curl into a guarded fetal position. Her body shuddered subtly while she sobbed silently. He sat by her side as she continued crying and overcoming the nauseous effects of the GHB. She grasped his hand and stared into his deep charcoal eyes.

"Tobi…we need to build them a memorial…" Her brilliant green eyes quivered with poignant intensity.

He sighed internally. Unbeknownst to her, the two men hadn't yet perished but rather were trapped in an alternate, secluded dimension. It was advantageous to omit the factual details and keep her uninformed of their fates. He brushed the stray hair from her face and pressed his forehead against her large brow.

"Sakura, please continue to rest. I will build it."

Her eyelids descended as he lifted his forehead away from hers. His eyes and facial muscles softened as he was rapt by the marked serenity embellishing her face. He sculpted two mounds of dirt in a haphazardly fashion. It was a shoddy and careless effort on his part but it was inane to him anyway. He merely sought to bolster his fabrication by fulfilling her request.

* * *

Sakura hung her head miserably low seated on a desk top. Tobi spun around in a rotating chair as he fished through a stack of paper. He scribbled something down on a miniature scroll and tucked it between two file containers.

Sakura lifted her head slightly panning her eyes across the unfamiliar dimly lit office. "Tobi, where are we?"

He seemed fixated on a set of paper strewn out across the desk. He quickly scanned a document titled "Emergency Kage Summit."

"Tobi?" Sakura's voice ascended.

He lifted Sakura's chin and gazed into her morose face. "You still seem quite depressed."

Sakura forced a sigh and lowered her gaze meekly. "I can't stop thinking about them…"

"Let's find a way to take your mind off of everything that's happened." He stroked the apple of her cheeks with the pads of his fingers.

Her eyes widened in surprise as his hands slid down to the back of her neck. She seized his hands and pushed them away from her body. She said nothing as he flashed her a disenchanted look. He slung a large white oversized cloak over her shoulders and reached for something behind the desk.

"Let's do something a bit different." He slipped a large conical hat over his cranium. The citrine colored hat possessed the kanji for lightning above the brim. "You be the secretary and I'll be the kage."

"Secretary?" Sakura's face flushed a deep scarlet color. The white cloak draped her body like a bed sheet. She blinked curiously as she crossed her legs and leaned backward. "What am I supposed to do then?"

"You do what the kage orders you to do." He pulled her into the chair and seated her on his lap. She furrowed her brow and lifted the conical hat from his head. She placed it over her own head and threw him a defiant smirk.

"I'm kage now."

"That hat suits you much better than your other assortment of hats." He wrapped his arms around her torso as she leaned backward against his shoulder.

She returned his comment with a scowl that slowly eased into a weak smile. She crawled back onto the desk top and kicked her legs over the ledge. He grasped her ankle and stopped the motion of her kicking.

"Let go of my ankle. It's an order from the kage." She pointed at him in domineering manner.

He rose from the chair promptly. His long hair veiled his eyes as laid her down onto the top of the desk. "Even a kage can be easily controlled…"

He batted the stack of papers off the desk and crawled on top positioning her beneath him. She arched her back as his lips pressed against the side of her neck. She wrapped her legs around his waist and intertwined her fingers behind the nape of his neck. Her skull suddenly slammed into a snow globe sending it off the ledge of the desk. The glass décor shattered on the floor staining the carpet with water and tiny fragments of confetti. Sakura's eyes seemed to suddenly enlarge as something had startled her.

"Ignore the snow globe…" Tobi hissed as the girl had been easily distracted.

"No…there's something else…" She whispered into his long raven hair. She absorbed the sound of a heavy footfall quickly approaching the office door.

A blonde, dark skinned man suddenly forced the office door open. He was unusually massive and possessed the burly physique of a wrestler. His deep, thunderous voice bellowed as he gaped at the unfamiliar male and female adorned in his cloak and hat sharing intimate contact atop his desk. "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"

Sakura uttered a shrill shriek as the enormous man lunged at them with a lightning laden fist.

* * *

A/N: Again…sorry for the long delay. Finally finished up my med school apps. Yay.

*Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid. Typically used as a general anesthetic.


	10. Objective

The brawny man's lightning laden fist careened into the surface of the desk splitting it in half and spraying large fragments of wood and splinters into the air. Sakura couldn't help but utter a shrill shriek as she flung her body off the desk and crashed into the wall. She tumbled sideways as the man's massive fist penetrated the wall of the office. The burly man then turned his gaze to Tobi and emitted a deep bestial bellow. Tobi placed his hands atop his cranium and evaded the man's herculean punches by taking long, awkward strides.

Sakura contorted her face as she observed Tobi's ludicrous evasion tactics. "Tobi, why the hell are you running like that?"

"How dare you mock me!" The man roared as he continued pursuing the gracelessly fleeing Tobi in repetitive circles.

"Sakura-chan!" Tobi hollered outstretching his hand.

Tobi's body began to phase through the bottom of the floor as Sakura grasped onto his hand. An uncanny chill relayed down her spine. The man's enormous fingers curled around the circumference of her ankle. Her stomach felt as though it had temporarily departed her body as the floor of the office suddenly became the ceiling of another room. She forcefully sucked in air before plummeting to the floor below. The dark skinned man's immense weight crushed her petite body. She squeezed her eyes shut as a murky red sheen had obscured her vision. She violently bucked beneath the man in an attempt to free herself from his hold. An involuntary wail escaped her lips while the man jammed his knee into her kidney.

"Raikage-sama!" An unfamiliar feminine voice quickly hushed the sound of Sakura's wailing.

He grasped a handful of her hair jerking her head back exposing her windpipe. His brawny arm quickly filled in the space below her chin compressing her trachea and inhibiting her air intake.

"Who are you?" The man snarled strangling her with increased force.

The silver haired woman glanced from the massive man to Tobi in a mystified yet alarmed manner.

Tobi twirled his fingers and uttered a demure chuckle. "Uh…lost travelers?"

Sakura's hand lightly grasped his forearm barely emitting a faint reddish pink chakra from her fingertips. The man merely intensified his strangulating hold as his dark skin flushed with a fiery red tone. "Is that a question or an answer?"

Sakura's wrist fell limp against her side. Her eyes began to rotate laterally as she collapsed within his hold. His eyes wandered down to the sudden onset of pain consuming his arm. Five small dots consisting of fingerprint-like shapes radiated a reddish pink tinge upon the outer surface of his forearm. He grit his teeth clutching his damaged arm and releasing his grip on the girl. How could such a light touch of her fingers invoke a pain of this magnitude? He struggled to curb the pain from incapacitating him as he noticed the girl's green eyes drift toward the masked man. Tobi grasped onto Sakura's wrist quickly drawing both their bodies into a vortex derived from the hole in his mask. The Raikage outstretched his arm in an attempt to prevent their escape but had been a mere moment too late. The unknown man and woman had already vanished from the room.

"Raikage-sama. Are you alright?" The silver haired secretary inquired.

He uttered something unintelligible and raced upstairs. His secretary followed a few paces behind him. The secretary gasped as the tips of the Raikage's ears burned a brilliant shade of red. He bellowed thunderously as he noted the classified contents atop his damaged desk had gone missing.

* * *

"Where are we?" Sakura asked a third time as they wandered an unfamiliar village. "Are you listening to me?"

Sakura sighed forcefully as Tobi seemed to be immersed within his own paracosmic world completely isolated from reality.

"Are you sure we're somewhere safe?" She seized his scarf spinning him around to face her. Her eyes narrowed charily. "I don't trust you to take us places anymore!"

"Did you think you would die a second time?" He answered with a slight upward inflection.

"Well I didn't want to find out!"

He stroked the side of her cheek tilting his head slightly in a playful fashion. "Maybe we should look for a place to rest that doesn't already have occupants."

"But we don't have any money…" Her voice descended dejectedly.

"Then let's go _make_ some money." He gave her a thumbs-up. His finger traced the circular furrows of his mask contemplating a means of obtaining quick money. "I'll see what I can find. Let's meet by that fountain at sundown."

Sakura followed the direction of his finger disclosing their agreed meeting location. It was a bland and uninteresting monument but it seemed to attract a decent sized crowd. She parted ways with Tobi and brooded on her subsequent choice of song.

Tobi meandered outside the village gates vigilant of any prying eyes or intrusive followers. He pressed the palm of his hand into the soil calling forth the anthropomorphic two-toned plant man.

"Sasuke has screwed up things even worse than I had anticipated…" Tobi growled as he watched Zetsu's head and upper torso emerge from the soil.

"Now what?" The white half of Zetsu rolled his eye.

"The Raikage is planning to arrange an emergency Kage summit. Kumogakure has sent a three-man team on its way to Konoha to inform the Hokage of Sasuke's attack on the Hachibi."

"What do you suggest?"

"Separate immediately. Track down and intercept the Kumo team headed by a blonde kunoichi named Samui. Make sure they do not reach Konoha or communicate with any Konoha shinobi. I also need you to meet Sasuke and prep for the capture. Do not disappoint me."

Without questioning orders, the two-toned plant creature split longitudinally down the center and disappeared within the earth.

Sakura had already accumulated a seemingly decent sum of money singing in front of the insipid fountain.

_Kimi wa ima namida nagashita_

_Nakija kuru kodomo no you ni_

_Tatoe asu ga mie naku nate mo mamoru you_

_Natsu no sora miagete niranda_*

She gathered up the tossed coins as the crowd had quickly dispersed.

"So the Phoenix sings once again." A bespectacled man wearing a serpentine patterned cloak approached her.

Sakura widened her eyes but quickly averted them to avoid conversation with the strange man. She cradled the coins within her arms against her abdomen slowly rising to her feet.

"I'm not surprised Madara has returned to the Land of Fire so soon after capturing the Hachibi."

Sakura furrowed her brow as he stood within her path. "Are you speaking to me?"

"You really did lose your memories, Sakura-san." The man placed his hand on her large brow.

Sakura writhed uncomfortably as if her internal organs had suddenly been crushed against her chest.

His scaly face contorted into a grin while he continued to rest his hand on her brow. "You really should be more protective of your 'entry site.' If I wanted to, I could rip your soul from the Phoenix's body forever erasing you from existence."

She recoiled backward slapping his hand off her forehead. "Who are you and how do you know about me?"

"I am Kabuto. Remember?" The man flashed her a slight smirk and reached into his cloak pulling out a vibrantly colored bird feather. He pressed the feather within the palm of her hand. Sakura gazed at her hand incredulously as the feather began to transform into an avian silhouette of pinkish red chakra.

"Suzu-chan…?" Her lips delicately traced the name of her parrot companion.

"That parrot is called Suzaku. It is a fragment of Phoenix chakra Orochimaru created in order to monitor the whereabouts of the Phoenix. Orochimaru had once contemplated using the Phoenix as a means of attaining immortality. He experimented on the Phoenix by killing test subjects and merging their souls with the Phoenix body. However, many subjects fruitlessly died due to the Phoenix's high rate of rejection. He abandoned the project once he discovered that the Phoenix was extremely intolerant of foreign agents entering its body besides its chosen inhabitant meaning he could not transplant the Sharingan to his new body. He was aware he would risk death if the Phoenix rejected his soul. Suzaku has been continuing to serve as a monitor even after Orochimaru's abandonment of the Phoenix Project."

Kabuto suddenly began laughing much to Sakura's confusion. "I do have to admit, Madara is extremely lucky for having encountered you by chance."

"Who is Madara?" Sakura inquired.

"Uchiha Madara is an incomplete being who wants to also acquire the Phoenix so he can become a complete entity with enough amplitude to host the Juubi within his body and achieve his "Moon's Eye Plan.' Essentially, he plans to put the entire world under his genjutsu controlling the will of every individual in existence." The bespectacled man pushed the frame of his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "He is merely existing as a spirit within a body of chakra. If he unites the Phoenix with its counterpart, he will transcend beyond human levels and gain the capacity to acquire the powers of the most terrifying creature known to this planet. He will undoubtedly rip your soul out of the Phoenix before he captures and seals the last tailed beast, the Kyuubi…which is currently contained within the body of your best friend."

"If this Madara guy rips my soul from the Phoenix then I will be completely erased from existence and he will be able to acquire the powers of a monster? How can I keep this from happening?" Sakura's fingers drained of feeling as she gazed into Kabuto's ashen face. Her voice acquired a grave degree of panic. "I need to warn Tobi!"

Kabuto cupped his face within his hand concealing his mouth and eyes. He made a low, repetitive hissing noise as his shoulders shrugged upwards. Sakura silently observed the man as he remained in this position for a solid minute. Her mind rapidly colored incoherent imagery of a faceless madman attacking Tobi and hunting her down like meager prey. All she desired was Tobi by her side in this moment of jeopardy. She interlaced her fingers together and pressed her adjoined hands against her back as if to relieve the pressure on her chest.

"Sakura-san…" The man removed his hand.

She gnashed her teeth as she noticed the hissing noises emanating from Kabuto had been laughter.

"…Madara has been traveling with you this whole time."

Sakura's tense jaw suddenly relaxed allowing her lips to part open. It felt as though the sudden influx of air prickling the surface of her lips had quickly become frigid and piercing.

"You're saying…Tobi is Madara…?" Sakura's face suddenly radiated with anger. "Tobi would never…!"

He gave a solid, hearty laugh. "Don't be so naïve! Madara has been familiarizing himself with the Phoenix and integrating bits of its chakra into his own body with every intimate encounter he's had with you. He's been using this strategy to eliminate the chance of rejection when he absorbs the Phoenix."

"How do you know this?"

He glanced at the Scarlet Macaw perched on Sakura's shoulder. "Through Suzaku I've seen _everything_."

Sakura shifted uncomfortably as she turned her head toward the reformed parrot. The parrot's beady eyes now made her feel…horribly violated.

"I'd prefer to see Madara fail but this won't be possible if you're naïve. Suzaku saw Madara drug you and capture the Hachibi and its host, Killer Bee."

"Tobi…Madara…was the one who killed Master Sabu and Killer Bee-sama…?" Sakura's teeth clenched her bottom lip as she curbed the sudden onset of tears welling up.

He nodded affirmatively. "He is planning to capture the host of the Kyuubi, Uzumaki Naruto…your teammate and best friend."

"Naruto?" Sakura parroted back.

"Baka! Naruto-baka!" The parrot said in a braying manner.

The man allowed the parrot to step up onto a single finger. "Suzaku does have a habit of saying the most commonly used phrase of the Phoenix's inhabitant."

He brandished his hand casting off the parrot into the air. The scarlet parrot ascended into the cobalt skies vanishing within the canopy of the trees.

"I will be watching you through Suzaku. She will monitor you from a safe distance beyond Madara's detection. Madara will be highly suspicious if he spots Suzaku again after he killed her. You must be vigilant around Madara as he does not handle betrayal lightly. He _will_ extract you from the Phoenix and he will do it _soon_."

"What should I do?" Sakura cried out desperately. "I can't confront him nor can I hide from him!"

Kabuto rested a finger on the grove of his chin. "Like you, he is immortal. However, the only way to erase him from existence is to extract his soul from the Dragon. If you can locate his 'entry site' you can take him out before he takes you out."

"His 'entry site'…" Sakura quietly repeated to herself.

"Don't get extracted, Haruno Sakura. If he removes your soul you cannot be revived by any jutsu…even the Impure World Resurrection." Kabuto pivoted on his feet turning away from her. "Farewell and never lower your guard."

She watched the serpentine man slowly vanish in the horizon. Her fingers trembled involuntarily as she clasped her hands over her eyes. Her entire body tensed into a fetal position dropping to the ground completely broken down in tears. Her larynx betrayed her as she failed to prevent herself from emitting any type of vocalized sobbing. She felt something tap the apex of her shoulder. It was difficult to raise her head as it felt heavy and lead-weighted. Her eyes lifted to the sight of the man in the orange mask bending down to her level holding a stick of dango in her face.

"Sakura-chan…?"

* * *

Sakura lay on the right side of the hotel bed cradling her torso within her arms while Tobi watched TV. He raised the remote and flipped off the TV before reclining back and resting his head on his arms. He turned toward Sakura and casually stroked the side of her cheek.

She recoiled backward as Kabuto's words plagued her thoughts. He seemed to be stricken back by her sudden reaction. In one fluid motion, he removed his shirt and cast it over the side of the bed. He then placed his mask on the nightstand and brushed the stray locks from his eyes. He cupped her chin within his hand and gazed at her with hardened coal black eyes. She winced and twisted her head sideways as he leaned inward to plant his lips on hers.

"What's wrong? You've been quite downcast all day. I'm just trying to cheer you up."

"I have a headache." She retorted and sank back into the pillow.

He studied the sudden quivering of her vibrant green eyes suddenly cast with a tearful and glossy sheen. Her entire body was conspicuously apprehensive and trembling. He grasped her wrist pressing his lips against the back of her hand. It was as though his lips had sent a shockwave rippling from her hand down her arm and to the rest of her limbs. This reaction wasn't characteristic of her…She had suddenly and inexplicably become fearful of his touch. She turned away from him facing the wall and withdrew her hand resting it back around her torso.

Could it be? Had somebody told her?

He quickly retired that thought from the brim of his mind. Perhaps he would continue monitoring her behavior until he could confirm his suspicions.

Sakura struggled to prevent herself from falling asleep. Her eyelids were unbearably heavy from previously crying. Tobi must've fallen asleep by now judging by how relaxed he seemed. She tried to remain as motionless as possible to feign sleep. She couldn't allow herself to fall asleep and compromise her chance at protecting her own existence. She rolled on her side facing toward Tobi's bare back. She gazed at the long crimson scar running down his back. The scar appeared fresh even though he had stated he obtained it in a battle with his rival long ago.

His entry site…

_If you can locate his 'entry site' you can take him out before he takes you out_. Kabuto's words reiterated within her mind.

She wished the thunderous and swift beating of her heart would hush itself. She forced herself to take slow, deep breaths to avoid alerting him of her traitorous intentions. Silently, she watched the outline of his body rise and fall to the rhythmical cadence of his breathing. Her outstretched fingers reached toward the deep scar lining his back…exposing his vulnerability to the mercy of her fingers.

* * *

*The lyrics to Lovers by 7 Seven Oops

A/N: I know due to recent manga developments that Tobi may or may not be Uchiha Madara. I started writing Aficionado before that revelation and for convenience sake Tobi= Uchiha Madara in this fic.


	11. Tension

Sakura continuing stretching her fingers toward his exposed flesh. She had to pursue this with utmost conviction otherwise she would face her own eradication from existence.

How could she confirm that Kabuto was telling the truth?

What if he was simply just setting her up?

Her fingers paused just before the pads could brush the surface of his skin.

Even if his name really was Madara what if Kabuto was lying about his intentions?

Her hand retreated as her chest throbbed vigorously against her ribcage. Her faltering was not related to the validity of Tobi's intentions she prompted herself. The true origin of her lack of conviction was evident. She rolled on her hips and turned to face the wall. She studied the barely decipherable floral design of the hotel wallpaper hoping to assuage the singeing pain within her chest. Her flurried mind only seemed to exacerbate the scorching agony within her heart with every reflection of his striking features and sublime touch.

Tobi stretched his legs and shifted onto his back. Her unsettling trembling and tense posture prevented him from easily falling asleep. Why was she inexplicably rapt with fear? The pink haired girl's mannerisms were irrefutably easy to decrypt her emotions but what was she thinking specifically? Had she encountered something or someone that established this sudden onset of apprehension?

_She wasn't sure how the floral patterns on the wall had suddenly vanished but a zephyr seemed to carelessly toss her hair in her face. She was standing on something solid which seemed to somehow hover in the air. Where was she? Where had Tobi gone? She gazed down at the stone surface beneath her feet. Several floating rocks littered the sky as if substituting the clouds. Something with a humanoid silhouette began to take shape before her eyes. Her voice echoed off the walls of the floating rocks as she recognized his distinctive long hair running down the back of the silhouette. _

"_Tobi!" _

_He turned around slowly flipping open his eyelids in an ominous manner. His red eyes seemed to instantly petrify her body. She was urged to scream yet his eyes had produced an inconceivable paralyzing effect on her. His lips curled into a malicious smirk just barely exposing his teeth. A skeletal manifestation began to shroud his body as his a peculiar pattern began to spin within his demonic crimson eyes. The humanoid being possessed two tusks protruding from its jaw and a long horn stemming from its brow. She backed up against the ledge of the hovering stone as he and the menacing humanoid creature advanced on her. He raised his right hand while the humanoid cloak mimicked his actions. She stepped backward off the ledge narrowly avoiding the horrifying creature's grasp. Her body plummeted rapidly, gravity drawing her down into the depths of mere nothingness. She could only distinguish the red light radiating from his demonic eyes staring down at her from the ledge of the airborne rock. _

_Those eyes…_

_Those goddamn haunting eyes… _

Her damp clothing clung to her skin as she thrashed on the bed. Her pillow was saturated with the seemingly endless tears escaping her eyes. Why did such a vivid nightmare have to plague her now? His arm suddenly pulled her up against his chest. She was swathed within his arms suddenly releasing the anxiety accumulated within her heart. He rested his chin on the crown of her skull sighing in relief as his embrace had successfully mitigated her fear and tension. Her trembling had ceased allowing her a serene respite from the conflicting feelings thronging her mind.

"You look terrible." Tobi stated the next morning.

She didn't disagree with his comment. Her eyelids were swollen, her brow was ridden with stress lines, and her face had undertaken a sickly ashen tone.

"I'll find you something sweet for breakfast." He quickly planted a kiss on her brow and fished for his mask.

"Tobi, do you love me?" Her tongue had tactlessly slipped.

He froze for a few seconds as if offended by her question. He set down his mask and flashed her a meek smile. "Hm. I was going to ask you the same question."

She grasped the comforter clenching it within a tight fist.

The corners of his mouth suddenly drew into a downward arc. His eyes drifted down to the floor averting her gaze. "You've been pushing me away lately…I can't help but feel hurt by your sudden coldness toward me."

She opened her mouth to respond but remained silent.

"When I re-entered this world, I was just like you…lost, confused, and alone. I've been tortured for so long by this lonely existence…Although I may be physically extant, I've been isolated from the rest of the world unable to reintegrate into the society of the mortals." He sat back down onto the bed peering into her crystalline eyes. "Sakura…you have been the best thing to ever happen to me. When I met you back in Yugakure, I knew you were just as isolated as I was…you would understand the personal turmoil I endured."

"I don't know what I'd do if…if…" He seemed to be constrained by a painful stitch within his diaphragm. "It would be absolutely unbearable if something were to happen to you. An existence without you would be meaningless to me…"

Sakura lowered her head dejectedly. She had severely undermined the legitimacy of his fondness of her. Kabuto's claims must've been fabricated. How could she confirm that he was a trustworthy individual?

"I'm sorry, Tobi." She rubbed her knuckle against the corner of her eye. "Please forgive me."

He snaked his arm around her pulling her in for a kiss on the lips. Her arms naturally conjoined behind the back of his neck returning his kiss with equal affection.

* * *

The silver haired jounin waved to his comrade joining him on the training grounds. Yamato rubbed his scalp gingerly as his eyes panned across the training grounds searching for something.

"Back already?" Kakashi tilted his head inquisitively.

"Huh?" Yamato scratched his jaw. "Have you seen the boys?"

"I thought you left on a mission with Team 7 two hours ago." Kakashi raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"I'm running quite late."

"You seem hung over."

Yamato nodded hesitantly. "Well, last night I…Let's just say I will not be partaking in any drinking bets in the future. I met a flirty girl last night. Blonde. Blue eyes. Huge bust. She seemed to be visiting from Kumo. I think her name was Sa…"

"Yamato." Kakashi interjected. "If you haven't left the village…then who is currently with Team 7?"

"Shit…"

Kakashi sighed into the palm of his hand. "I'll summon the hounds."

* * *

Tobi scrutinized a map as he and Sakura glided from one tree branch to the next. "The villagers told me all about a place called Konoha. I think its a few miles south of here. They said it's full of interesting tourist attractions worthy of visiting."

"The last village didn't have much in terms of sightseeing. I hope they have nice hotels there." Sakura beamed at her companion.

She suddenly froze in her tracks halting her motion on the thick limb of a tree. Tobi halted beside her stuffing the map inside his pocket. "What's wrong?"

"Someone is coming…" She spoke pneumatically.

The faint noise seemed to draw closer to their location. She squinted her eyes fixating her vision on a bright orange figure quickly closing in on her and Tobi. The orange clad individual seemed to head a group consisting of three other men.

"Huh, what is it?" A dark haired pasty skinned male asked his comrade.

Two other males caught up to their teammates and gazed up at the pink haired girl standing in the tree tops. The blonde's blue eyes widened as his mouth drooped open in an incredulous manner.

"S…Sakura-chan…?"

She winced internally mystified by his knowledge of her name.

"Sakura…no way…" The blonde repeated to himself.

The spiky haired male clenched his fingers into fists. His head hung low veiling his eyes beneath his dark bangs. His entire body seemed to tremor violently as if he would spontaneously combust.

Tobi glanced down at the shuddering boy as he had remained fixated in the same position for an extended period of time.

_Sasuke, what are you doing? Act now! Your target is distracted_.

His teammates cast their glances in his direction as he began to utter a vile snarling noise. He snapped his head in a violent upward arc barely containing his broiling rage. He pointed his finger in Tobi's direction.

"You…you…" Sasuke's volatile voice suddenly startled the wild birds roosting within the trees. "Is this some kind of fucking joke?"


	12. Demise

"What are you finding so comical, Sasuke? Please enlighten me." Tobi folded his arms gazing down at the fuming lad.

Sasuke gnashed his teeth vigorously. "I've waited patiently and obediently heeded your orders but this…this is crossing the line! Why did you bring _her_ here?"

Sakura exchanged a brief glance with Tobi and retreated behind him. "Tobi, who are these people?"

Naruto took a step forward raising a loose fist before his chest. "Sakura-chan, don't you remember us? It's me, Naruto."

"Naruto?" Her aural memory resonated with the sound of the macaw's raspy voice. Why couldn't she associate his name or face with any memories? Why did he attach the affectionate honorific to her name? Just who was he to her?

"Please remember, Sakura-chan." An overwhelming degree of desperation seized his voice.

"It's not Sakura." Sasuke stated sternly.

"But it looks and sounds just like her." Naruto protested. "What if the body they recovered wasn't really Sakura's?"

"It's not Sakura. It's an imposter." His eyes fixated on the masked man standing beside her. "Haruno Sakura is dead."

Sakura's crystalline green eyes widened as if the word "imposter" had physically dealt a blow to her abdomen.

This must've been Orochimaru's forbidden jutsu—the Impure World Resurrection technique…Sasuke's mind promptly flooded with speculations. Was Madara also capable of using this technique? He unmistakably brought some kind of apparition of his former teammate as a means of toying with his mind…or perhaps testing his loyalty.

The brunette jounin's dark eyes followed the motion of Tobi's hand as he slightly raised it in the air delivering a subtle signal. The team leader reached into his weapon holster drawing out a single kunai. His lips pressed into a sinister smirk as he lunged for the blonde jinchuuriki. A hoard of ink snake-like creatures sprung from the pale-skinned shinobi's sketchpad entrapping the jounin's trunk and legs like a rope binding.

"It's not Yamato." Sai's snakes constricted the imposter wielding their leader's appearance.

"It's that thing!" Sakura grasped onto Tobi's arm as the man morphed into the white anthropomorphic plant creature she had battled at the Daimyo's dinner party. "Please, let's leave already."

Tobi's feet remained firmly planted despite Sakura's pleas to flee.

"Sasuke." Tobi's harsh voice uttered. "Act now."

Naruto cocked his head to the white creature bound by Sai's ink snakes then to his suspicious teammate. "Sasuke, what is going on?"

His callous onyx eyes suddenly shifted to a deep crimson tone.

Naruto's face contorted to a deep scowl. "Who is that man and why are you following his orders?"

"It's none of your business."

"It is my business!" Naruto pounded his fist against his sturdy chest. "Why have you suddenly turned against us?"

Sasuke's heartless eyes locked onto Naruto's dogged sapphire orbs. The Uchiha boy slightly lowered his head belligerently gritting his teeth together.

"I despise you. I despise the Leaf village and all it stands for. But what I despise most is those who get in the way of my goals and bludgeon me into doing their bidding." Sasuke's blood red eyes darted toward the masked man elevated in the trees. "I refuse to continue taking orders from you, Madara!"

"Madara…?" Sakura's lips softly traced the sound of the familiar name. She gradually released her grip on his arm and took a step back.

His face was impalpable, concealed beneath the bright orange mask.

"I urge you to consider the consequences of betrayal." His voice descended in a spiteful fashion provoking a sweltering sensation throughout every nerve in her body.

_You must be vigilant around Madara as he does not handle betrayal lightly._ The serpentine stranger's words resonated within her mind.

"Fuck you, Madara! I was never on your side!" Sasuke curled his fingers rigidly. "I will seek my revenge without your intervention!"

"Hmph." Tobi sighed indifferently. His voice suddenly acquired a nuance of inquisitiveness. "Are you going to kill me?"

Sasuke seized his right bicep and charged a loud, wailing current of lightning to the tips of his fingers. He lunged for the masked man at breakneck speed as the lightning began to increase in intensity and volume. She didn't know why she had hastily thrown herself in between Tobi and Sasuke. Perhaps, it was that inexplicable urge to play heroine that had cropped up during her confrontation with that plant man at the Daimyo's dinner party. Despite her knowledge of his immortal state and ambiguous aspirations, an innate desire to protect him had involuntarily seized possession of her body. The imminent piercing noise of his attack overwhelmed the sensitive tissue of her inner ear. It felt as though insufferable loud-pitched screech had ruptured her vestibular nerve compromising her balance and deafening her to the external world. She pressed her palms against the cups of her ears in an attempt to dampen the strident noise.

Beyond that raging current of lightning screeching like the uproar of a thousand dying birds, she spotted a pair of murderous red eyes possessing a star shaped pattern gazing upon her.

That familiar high-pitched noise…

Those haunting red eyes…

It had to be…

"AHH!" Sakura's screams reverberated throughout the forest.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto cried out.

His lightning laden hand penetrated her chest extending to her back. A trickle of blood descended from the corners of her mouth landing on her shirt. She continued screaming as the reddish pink chakra flared from her wound. Despite his hurried attempt to retract his hand from her flesh, the peculiar chakra ignited his hand scalding his skin.

Sasuke grasped his wrist scrutinizing the strange chakra consuming his flesh. "What is this…?"

A flying heel suddenly clocked him in the temple launching his body into the ground like a meager ragdoll. Tobi recovered his balance and glanced back at the continuously screaming Sakura. The Phoenix chakra had already regenerated her wounds yet she still continued to holler in agony and clasp her hands over her ears.

"Sakura, get ahold of yourself!" He attempted to raise his voice beyond the volume of her screaming.

She staggered clumsily as if heavily intoxicated. She couldn't hear anything besides the annoying ringing noise exacerbating her excruciating headache. Her eyes repeatedly shifted side to side while her head drifted upwards and towards the left. Again, she felt inundated by a powerful wave of nausea. Her knees buckled sending her body straight to the ground. A murky red haze obscured her vision enveloping her in an enigmatic world of mere nothingness.

_An icy breeze prickled her skin prompting the hairs on her arm to stand erect. Her destination was only a few miles ahead. She couldn't afford to take a respite now while the temperature was continuing to drop. She continued wiggling her fingers in an attempt to salvage the dwindling feeling remaining that hadn't already been numbed by the cold. She halted for a moment to fish the cool vials within her bag. She warmed the liquid compound within the palms of her hands to avoid allowing the cold temperatures to deactivate the essential medications she was to deliver. She pressed herself against the thick bark of an aging tree hoping to conceal herself from the faint sounds of unidentified whispers. _

"_Are you sure you're going to go through with this?" An airy masculine voice spoke. "You don't really believe Madara, do you?" _

"_It doesn't matter." A familiar voice stated affirmatively. _

_Sakura grasped onto the tree peering into the distance. The beating of her heart seemed to pulsate within her skull. Centered among three other individuals stood her defected teammate and cherished love. She whispered inaudibly. "S…Sasuke-kun…" _

_He and the three indistinguishable individuals were all sporting…the red and black cloaks of the Akatsuki? _

"_According to him, it's assimilate back into the village or die." Sasuke scoffed. "They will easily accept me back upon hearing of Orochimaru and Itachi's defeat. I will undoubtedly be revered as a hero." _

"_Yes, but do you really think you can show restraint and pose as a spy until Madara gives further orders?" A silver haired male folded his arms. "Sounds rather boring to me…" _

"_Don't question Sasuke-kun's tactics! We just have to be a bit patient." A red haired bespectacled girl decked the other boy's cranium. _

_The boy with the pointed teeth spun around opposite to the girl. "I just think it's irritating that we have to wait in the periphery while Sasuke reintegrates into Konoha. What if he gets homesickness and abandons the plan?" _

"_I could never forgive Konoha for what they did to Itachi and my clan. I will crush each and every civilian for flourishing on the spilt blood of my clan!" _

_Sakura clutched her chest utterly dumbfounded by Sasuke's sudden shift in persona. How could he speak so ill of the village? What happened to Itachi? Why does he seek to destroy the village he had previously called home? Thousands of questions deluged her thoughts as she curtailed her temptation to panic and expose her presence. _

"_Why Sasuke-kun…?" She whispered to herself gnawing on the tips of her fingernails. _

"_Quiet, everyone." The redhead pressed her finger against her lip. "We have an intruder." _

"_Where are they?" Sasuke's Sharingan immediately activated. _

_Sakura winced as the redhead's finger pointed in her direction. She mentally cursed to herself quickly scrambling in an attempt to flee. A deafening noise seemed to suddenly arisen from behind her. The screeching noise rapidly increased in volume as if it was drawing closer to her ear. She rotated her head to the side just barely catching a glimpse of a pair of demonic eyes radiating beyond a howling current of lightning. A scream escaped her larynx succeeding the force of impact. She gazed up at the Uchiha's impalpable face. His eyes had been obscured by the shadows of his hair while his lips began to move. The nauseating ringing noise overwhelming her eardrums prevented her from hearing his words. His face gradually vanished as her vision had been masked by a dark red haze. Her hair and face were sodden in a warm oozing liquid. It felt as though her brow had suddenly become exposed to the freezing air currents. The pain began to quickly subside while the numbness seemed to surge throughout her entire body. _

_A faint yet euphonious sound seemed to pacify her hysteric thoughts. It was originating from some type of bird. She closed her eyes allowing her conscious to become immersed in the melodious singing of the birdlike creature. Perhaps she had fallen asleep. Yes, she affirmed. She was simply just awaking from the night's slumber greeted by the pleasant chirping of birds signifying the dawn of a new day._

Sakura had been down on her hands and knees. Her face had been smudged with dirt and grass stains from her prior collision with the ground. Her head snapped upward revealing her luminous green eyes beneath her bloodstained tresses. The Uchiha boy's eyes seemed to enlarge as the pinkish red chakra enveloped her body.

"I remember now….Sasuke-kun…" Her voice acquired a livid tone. "…You're the one who killed me!"


	13. Recollection

The amaranth chakra began to form an avian shroud around the perimeter of Sakura's body. Her scorching cheeks didn't seem to chill from the moist trail of tears streaming from her eyes.

"Why do you want to destroy Konoha? Your home….your friends…Why? Why did you kill me?" The fiery chakra engulfed her as she delivered an earsplitting scream.

Her scream rapidly escalated in pitch suddenly becoming inaudible to the range of the human ear. A red, bubbling chakra flared from Naruto's body as he seized his stomach in an attempt to restrain the fox demon's chakra from overtaking his conscious. Tobi arched his back clasping his hands over his ears. The black chakra of his host flared with increasing intensity as the pitch of her scream incessantly escalated. Sai and Sasuke directed their gazes from the pinkette to the two men sinking down to their hands and knees. Naruto's gut had suddenly become overwhelmed by a powerful wave of nausea. His head swayed mildly as he tried to maintain balance in his crouching position.

_Get yourself together!_ A monstrous fox demon uttered in his mind.

"W-what the hell just happened?" Naruto pushed off his palms and rocked his weight back to a seated position as the piercing vibrations dissipated.

_The high frequency of the Phoenix's chakra disrupted the equilibrium of our chakra._ The fox demon growled as Naruto cupped the back of his ear._ If you're not careful, the hyper-resonance will upset the natural rhythm of our chakra and incapacitate us both. _

Tobi pressed his hand against back of his head holding himself upright. He quickly recovered to his feet dusting his hands on his pants. He rested his chin within his thumb and index finger in a meditative manner.

"I'm not sure whether or not to thank you, Sasuke." Tobi slightly elevated his chin casting Sasuke a contemptuous glare. "So you were the one responsible for her death."

"You…you didn't…" Sasuke fumbled his words. If he didn't know of his involvement in her death then perhaps he wasn't using her to coerce him. How had he come in contact with her and why did he have her at his side? What kind of relationship had he formed with her? He shuddered internally as he briefly considered the slim possibility of Madara and Sakura sharing a romantic relationship. He quickly rejected the repulsive thought and directed his gaze to the fuming chakra-cloaked girl closing in on him.

He grasped the hilt of his sword momentarily before the scalded tissue of his right hand released his grip on his weapon. He discarded the blade and focused chakra to the tips of his left hand as the kunoichi lunged in his direction. She concentrated the reddish pink chakra to her fists and feet. He evaded her sluggish, chakra laden punches avoiding contact with the highly resonating chakra. She drove her heel into the ground quickly demolishing the soil and earth beneath him. Although her hits were immense in power, he found himself hardly requiring the assistance of the Sharingan to track her incredibly sluggish movements.

"Sasuke! Sakura-chan! Stop it!" Naruto cried out as a stream of lightning impaled Sakura in the chest.

Sasuke lowered his left hand allowing the current of lightning to dissolve into tiny faint veins. She clasped her hands over her wounds as the Phoenix chakra immediately regenerated her flesh. She squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to conceal any display of the agonizing pain radiating throughout her chest.

"What the hell…?" Sasuke took notice of Tobi's soft chuckling.

Tobi wagged his finger tauntingly. "You cannot kill her a second time, Sasuke. She will simply keep regenerating if she is damaged. The girl that stands before you is the soul of Sakura residing in an immortal being."

"Immortal…?" A cool bead of sweat trickled down the length of Sasuke's temple.

He easily eluded the girl's herculean punches. He had to conserve his strength and chakra in order to take out Madara but Sakura's perpetual assault would undoubtedly deplete his stamina. Tobi smirked beneath the obscurity of his mask as a wave of the amaranth colored chakra seemed to impair Sasuke's balance. Sasuke's disposal would result in one less task to complete on his agenda. The Uchiha boy touched his palm to the auricle of his ear. He gazed at the smear of blood staining his palm. He quickly turned his focus to the chakra loaded fist advancing on him. He inhaled deeply puffing his cheeks.

"Katon: Gokakyuu no Jutsu!"

A wall of flames completely consumed the kunoichi. He swallowed forcefully as Sakura had been promptly engulfed within his flame jutsu. Suddenly, something clocked him in the face launching him off his feet. A flash of light temporarily blinded him as his back had careened into the earth. A heavy burden crushed his diaphragm against his ribs constricting his respiration. Droplets of moisture dripped onto his cheeks and trailed down his chest. His eyelids flipped open revealing the source of the weight on his chest. Sakura sat atop his chest clutching onto the collar of his shirt. Numerous droplets of moisture landed on his face and chest as she repeatedly walloped him in the face. Her punches seemed to decrease in cadence becoming less powerful in magnitude. He gazed up at her tear ridden, exasperated face in between each interval of her punch noting the change in her countenance. Her hand was bare, completely devoid of the peculiar chakra. The tears seemed to flow faster as her teeth clenched her bottom lip. Her fist trembled and slowly loosened. She shook her head and grasped her face while her sobbing seemed to intensify in magnitude.

Sasuke blinked rapidly clearing the blood and debris from his upper eyelid. "Aren't you going to kill me?"

"I…I…" Her voice dithered. "I'm not like you!"

He froze for a moment as if her voice had sent an electric current coursing through his chest defibrillating his heart.

"I can never forgive you for taking my life but I could never forgive myself for taking your life either…" She wiped her eyes repeatedly. "Taking revenge on you will forever haunt me for as long as I continue to exist. As I previously told you the night you left Konoha, revenge will never bring anyone happiness. It will inevitably cause endless suffering. Although my life was unjustly cut short, I was given another chance of existing in this world…I just want to witness the fulfillment of my wish…I just want to see the day where Team 7 can smile and laugh together…"

Sasuke remained silent as his gaze had been captivated by the prominent scar on her scalp and the red bloodstain in her hair. Her facial features suddenly began to morph before his eyes. His mind ventured back to the night he had eliminated the snooping intruder. The human head before him was nearly indistinguishable. Deep crimson blood oozed from the mouth and nostrils. Fragments of spongy bone were barely hanging to the thick tissue of the meninges. The brain case emerged from the ruptured skull losing form as it had been freed from its bony encasing. He could not determine the identity of the individual as he gazed upon the pink and red mess of brain matter oozing from the enormous gaping hole in his victim's skull. The mutilated skull urged him to want to vomit yet he could not avert his eyes from the gory sight. The blood had already soaked much of the individual's hair around the scalp. He further scrutinized the exceptionally pink hue of the tips. The intruder he had indiscriminately killed…the lifeless body with the gruesomely maimed skull…it had to be her…

"Sakura…" He barely breathed as he peered into her crystal-like green eyes. His mind wavered back to the sight of her mangled face then to the intact, animated face of the girl staring down at him. Had she even witnessed the sight of her dead body? How could she not seek revenge on him for having done _that_ to her?

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto embraced the girl as she slid off Sasuke's chest. "I'm so glad to have the Sakura I knew back again."

Sai ambled in close to the group. The corners of his lips drew into a frail smile. Sasuke ignored his former teammates awaiting any further words from him. He cocked his head aside avoiding Sakura and Naruto as he peered at Tobi folding his arms in the distance.

"Hmph…things have gotten so cheesy I could cry." Tobi said flatly.

Sasuke pushed Sakura and Naruto away as he scrambled to his feet. "I'm not done with you, Madara!"

"I'll kill you first and capture the Kyuubi myself."

Sasuke charged his left hand with the screeching lightning while Naruto quickly began forming the spiraling ball of chakra within his hands. The two boys lunged for the masked man as he remained stationary.

"No, stop!" Sakura cried out inserting herself in between Naruto and Tobi.

Unable to halt his forward momentum, Naruto planted the Rasengan straight into Sakura's abdomen. She wailed as the spinning blue ball of chakra tore up her shirt and the flesh of her abs.

"Sakura-chan! Why are you protecting him?" Naruto hollered as he withdrew his hand.

Her damaged flesh immediately repaired her wound. She brandished her arm casting him back. "Stay back, Naruto! He can suck you into his eye and teleport you away. He is also capable of intangibility so he would just phase through your attacks anyway."

"So what do we do now?" Naruto cocked a single eyebrow.

Sakura snapped her head toward Tobi fixing her gaze on the hole in his mask as if she could read his face underneath. "Tobi is immortal as well. The only way to defeat him is to extract his soul from the scar on his back."

Tobi winced internally as if he had been struck in the gut with a metal bat. His skin had been swathed in numbness feeling like thousands of thorns prickled his flesh just below the surface of his skin. He struggled to stifle the rate of his breathing. His own windpipe seemed to betray him as he could barely acquire a sufficient volume of air. He gnashed his teeth together to mitigate the rapid heaving of his chest but to no avail. He began to laugh through his forced breaths. His forced airy laughter quickly shifted to a much profounder chortle allowing him to breathe more deeply and evenly.

He managed to acquire a composed tone of voice. "So, Sakura…What kept you from taking me out last night?"

Sakura's eyes widened apprehensively. So he _had_ been awake and aware of her intentions. "You…you were the one who killed Master Sabu and Killer Bee-sama…and Tobi isn't your real name…"

A red light glimmered from the hole in his mask. "It doesn't matter. I'm curious to know who told you about me. Do tell."

Sakura caught Tobi's fist within her hand. He seized her fist as she delivered a counter punch. They grasped each other's fists engaging in a shoving match.

"It doesn't matter now, does it?" She narrowed her eyes pressing chakra into her fists.

He conjured the black chakra to his fists pushing back against his counterpart. Sasuke and Naruto watched helplessly as they blocked each other's strikes, leapt away from each other, and re-engaged in a chakra shoving match.

He seized her by the arm and yanked her closer. He callously whispered in her ear. "I've had fun playing with you but I'm done playing now."

His knee shot straight into her solar plexus causing her to double over desperately gasping for air. She blocked his round house kick and twisted his foot against its axis. He drew back his foot unfazed by its rotation. She cursed to herself. It wasn't fair! Why was he so unresponsive to pain while she was excessively sensitive to pain? She was unjustly disadvantaged. His weak point was hidden beneath his clothing on his back while hers was blatantly exposed to the open. She had to protect her head but he was proficiently incapacitating her with pain. He lunged at her outstretching his hand. She pushed her hands in front of her emitting a protective shield of the Phoenix chakra to her support. His chakra clashed with her own launching her body backward. She struggled to stop her own momentum by pitching her arms to the side to halt the propulsion.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto rushed toward her.

Sakura hissed at Naruto and Sasuke. "Stay out of th…"

Tobi had teleported before her and wrapped his fingers around her throat. He lifted her off her feet compressing her airways. His opposite hand reached for her cranium. She hastily loaded her fist with chakra and smashed her knuckles against the hard plastic shell of his orange mask. Fragments of plastic leapt into the air as her punch had chucked his body several meters away. His back collided with a tree snapping the solid trunk of the tree in half.

Tobi cast the remaining segments of his shattered mask aside and wiped his brow. Naruto and Sasuke exchanged bewildered glances as Tobi gradually recovered to his feet. Sasuke had previously envisioned him as an older, decrepit man. This man was the co-founder of Konoha. How could he possess a youthful appearance?

"Not bad, Sakura." Tobi flashed her a patronizing smirk. His red demonic eyes reminded her of the disturbing nightmare she had witnessed last night.

"Tobi…" She spoke in a pneumatic yet resolute manner. "Did you really mean what you said to me this morning? Would you be sad if I were to cease existing?"

She gasped as something captured her from behind. He materialized behind her snaring her within a headlock. Her hands gripped his arm tucked underneath her chin while his opposite hand rested atop her scalp.

"Nope." He answered. Her grip suddenly loosened as her eyes flooded with tears.

"Of course Tobi lied to Sakura-chan." He stated in his annoyingly higher pitched voice.

"STOP IT!" She screamed through her sobs as she bucked and thrashed in his hold. "Don't do this to me…"

His voice rapidly descended yielding a grave undertone. "You were merely a tool for me to achieve my goals."

"Rasengan!" Naruto sprang toward Tobi's back. He simply phased through both Tobi and Sakura stumbling and tumbling out from the front of both of them.

Sakura's sobs increased immensely as he began to extract a translucent being from the scar on her head. "PLEASE DON'T ERASE ME!"

The translucent wraith quickly dissipated causing the corporeal figure of Sakura to degenerate into measly fragments of dust. The vibrantly colored Phoenix emerged from its previous human appearance obediently following the motions of Tobi's hand. The chirping chakra entity melded into his body integrating with its counterpart.


	14. Invincible

The silver hawk pendant plummeted from Sakura's vanished form. The tiny pendant resonated with a faint clink as it collided with the ground. Naruto and Sasuke exchanged incredulous stares assiduously scrutinizing the enemy's motions. Tobi retrieved the pendant and quickly hooked it around his neck.

"Sakura-chan…? What happened to Sakura?" Naruto cried out clenching his fingernails into his palms.

Tobi ignored the blonde's inquiry as he seemed to be enraptured by the amaranth colored chakra emanating from the tips of his fingers. He pressed the butt of his palms together curling his fingers towards each other emitting a forceful shockwave of the pinkish red chakra.

"Not again!" Naruto pressed his palms against his ear as the waves of chakra evoked a nauseating sensation within his gut. He struggled to stay upright under the agonizing vibrations seizing his vestibular nerve.

_Stay on your feet!_ The demon fox howled within Naruto's mind. The vibrations immediately overwhelmed the blonde jinchuuriki despite the Kyuubi's sharp protests.

Sasuke and Sai mimicked Naruto's actions. Sasuke staggered as if intoxicated until his knees buckled beneath him. He turned his gaze to Sai lying adjacent to him. Blood trickled down the lobes of his ears streaking his pallid neck. He arched his back drawing his knees to his chest in an effort to assuage the excruciating vibrations.

The Zetsu clone thrashed within his restraints as the outermost layering of his skin peeled away from his body and disintegrated into the waves of chakra. His pale skin quickly tore from his form like shredded fragments of paper exposing his dermis to the exterior world.

"Please! Stop! Don't destroy me too!" The anthropomorphic creature cried out as his body rapidly deteriorated under the wrath of the pinkish red chakra.

Tobi disregarded the clone's frantic pleas and continued increasing the frequency of the vibrations.

"GAH!" The clone's body fragmented completely scattering bits of flesh and blood into the air.

Sasuke's eyes shifted to Naruto on his left uttering a pained gurgling noise. Minute fragments of his skin shredded from his hands revealing the red burning chakra of the Kyuubi beneath the surface of his hide. Sasuke seized his right hand as the damaged tissue began to peel off and disintegrate once parting from his hand. He strained to lift his lead-weighted head overwhelmed with nausea. His eyes repeatedly drifted from his target too disoriented to focus on the enemy. They wavered back and forth capturing glimpses of the trees and forest then Tobi and then the trees once again. He squeezed his eyelids shut briefly and forced them open despite his inability to track his focus on a specific object.

"_Amaterasu_!"

The charcoal black flames ignited at random catching anything caught within Sasuke's vacillating focus. He forced himself erect once the vibrations ceased. Tobi's screams resonated within his throbbing eardrums as the black flames consumed the anterior plane of his body.

"No! This can't be!" Tobi's distressed hollering conjured an exultant smirk on Sasuke's lips.

Naruto shook his head promptly casting away his dazed state. Tobi's agonized screams quickly seized his attention.

A pinkish red cloak of chakra veiled his body absorbing the deep black flames. Sasuke's eyes widened casting skepticism on the sudden disappearance of the unmerciful flames of his Mangekyo Sharingan. As he had previously witnessed with Sakura, the chakra immediately restored Tobi's damaged flesh.

"I'm just kidding." Tobi pressed a finger against the corner of his scathing, puerile grin.

Sasuke grated his teeth together. "Damn it…"

"It's a shame Sakura didn't know how to fully utilize this power."

"What…" Naruto uttered a deep snarl. "What happened to Sakura? Where is she?"

"Gone forever." Tobi replied mirthfully.

"Gone? What do you mean?" The blonde jinchuuriki ascended to his hands and knees.

"She ceases to exist. I ripped out her soul and absorbed her host. Now that she is out of the way, I can…"

"GAHH!" Naruto bellowed as the oozing red fox cloak engulfed his body. His claws tore into the earth as three tail-like appendages hovered above his rump. He could barely enunciate his words beyond his livid snarling. "You…you'll pay for what you did to Sakura!"

"Oh." Tobi clasped his hand against his cheek. "Are you going to kill me?"

Naruto crouched down baring his elongated canines at the amused Uchiha.

"Come at me. Avenge that stupid little _whore_!" Tobi cackled loudly pounding his fist against his chest provocatively.

"Naruto, stop!" Sasuke called out as the enraged jinchuuriki lunged for the opponent. "Don't get too close! Only engage in long-range attacks or he'll suck you in!"

Tobi remained stationary as the fiery cloaked jinchuuriki ignored Sasuke's words continuing his impetuous assault. He hollered incessantly further igniting the blistering red chakra of the Kyuubi.

Tobi crossed his arms against his chest patiently awaiting Naruto's impeding claws. A sinister smirk graced his lips. Sai promptly increased the speed of his brush strokes. Two ink birds equipped with explosive tags sprung to life from the scroll ready to obey the orders of their creator. Sai brandished his paintbrush in Naruto's direction casting the birds toward the jinchuuriki too enraged to heed Sasuke's warnings. Tobi's eyes followed the movements of the ink birds while still observing the sweltering chakra shroud quickly approaching him. The two birds zoomed past Naruto on opposite sides before uniting and colliding into one another before Naruto's face. A vast ball of flames ignited before Naruto temporarily halting his forward momentum. A wall of smoke separated the Uchiha and jinchuuriki obscuring both their views of one another. Tobi squinted clarifying his view of the jinchuuriki's silhouette in the murky haze. A red extended arm of chakra shot in his direction from behind the obscurity of the smoke wall. He leapt backward easily escaping the chakra's reach. The fingers of the chakra hand curled inward snagging a single claw on the chain around Tobi's neck. A sharp tug jerked the back of his neck as the hand of chakra ripped the chain from his neck and crushed the tiny hawk pendant within its palm. Tobi's blood red eyes widened watching the crushed bits of silver fall from the loosened grip of the chakra hand. He uttered an inhuman snarl from the depths of his larynx and cast a sonic wave of amaranth chakra in the jinchuuriki's direction. The Kyuubi cloak rapidly dissipated as the amaranth chakra had pitched his body backward.

"Naruto!" Sai hollered catching his comrade's body within his arms.

Naruto writhed within Sai's grip clutching the steal on his stomach as if it had been wounded.

"Naruto, get ahold of yourself!" Sasuke hissed as Sai released the thrashing blonde.

A loud slap in the face seemed to jolt Naruto from his agonized complaints. Sasuke recoiled his hand away from Naruto's face.

"What the hell was that for?" Naruto rubbed his throbbing red cheek.

"I told you not to blindly charge at him, idiot!"

Tobi's eyes fished for the fragments of his prized pendant but to no avail. The tiny melded piece of metal had been completely obliterated before his eyes. His breaths seemed to become shallow and forced. His arms quivered violently as his staccato breaths rapidly escalating to irrepressible hyperventilation. He covered his eyes as if to prevent them from spontaneously combusting. A ribcage-like apparition began to form around the perimeter of his body. The fiery chakra shrouding his body quickly formed a complete skeletal outline of a head and trunk.

The three boys instantly fixed their attention to the malevolent wave of chakra emanating from the suddenly infuriated Tobi. He removed his hands from his eyes revealing the unique pattern of his higher level Mangekyo Sharingan. The vile chakra transformed the skeletal shroud into a warrior-like humanoid being with multiple arms and two faces.

"I'll put this world to sleep!" Tobi's monstrous voice bellowed as the force of chakra lifted the boys from their feet.

Sasuke and Sai quickly recovered their balance.

"What is that?" Sai helped Naruto back to his feet.

Sasuke brooded silently for a moment.

Naruto conjured two shadow clones at his side. The clones quickly collected wind based chakra in the form of a giant shuriken slowly rotating in the original Naruto's hand hoisted above his head.

"That alone won't do anything." Sasuke stated abruptly.

"What?" The original Naruto cocked his head to the side.

"The Susanoo's defense is nearly impenetrable."

Sai flourished his paintbrush feverishly drafting something on his scroll. "Perhaps we can combine our attacks and weaken his defense."

Sasuke squeezed the lids of his left eye shut. He glanced to Naruto and Sai giving a slight nod of approval.

"_Amaterasu_!"

"_Rasenshuriken_!"

A massive flock of ink birds sprung from Sai's scroll following behind the spinning chakra shaped as a fuma shuriken. Sasuke's black flames ignited consuming the surface of the immense humanoid shroud enveloping Tobi's body. The spinning shuriken chakra connected with its target followed by the great hoard of ink birds equipped with explosive tags. The boys raised their forearms defensively as their collaborative assault jostled the earth beneath their feet. They held their collective breaths for what seemed to feel like several minutes in order to observe the success of their attacks. The smoke and haze dissipated gradually unveiling the unscathed monstrous chakra and Tobi standing within it.

"That did nothing!" Naruto bemoaned over their futile efforts. "How the hell are we supposed to defeat him?"

Sasuke star patterned eyes seemed fixated on the hand motions of Tobi's Susanoo. His Susanoo strung out several tomoe interconnected by a thread of chakra in between two of its hands.

"_Yasaka Magatama_!"

"Get behind me! Now!" Sasuke urged as Tobi cast the thread of tomoe in their direction.

Sai and Naruto obeyed Sasuke's order without question flinging themselves behind the purple skeletal chakra forming around his body. An ominous horned skeletal creature surrounded Sasuke like armor. The thread of tomoe careened into Sasuke's Susanoo crumbling his incomplete defense. The bones of the skeletal being cracked in half causing the being to collapse into itself. Sasuke roared as the infrastructure of his Susanoo crumbled only absorbing a fraction of Tobi's threaded tomoe attack. He had been launched off his feet but he had no indication of how far he had been tossed. A blood red miasma obscured his vision leaving him oblivious and disoriented. His body had felt too heavy to rise to his feet again. His shirt had been sodden in a lukewarm liquid. Nothing seemed audible or comprehendible. He yearned to stay down and simply sleep off the numbness inundating his body. Although his eyes could see nothing coherent, his mind seemed to fabricate something blurry and pink. Is this what dying felt like?

"Sasuke…" He heard a faint feminine voice. Was it her voice calling to him? Was she inviting him to share her own fate? Was she welcoming him into death? Into non-existence? Her entire face had been caked with dried blood. Her bloodstained pink hair veiled her forehead and eyes concealing everything but the tip of her nose and mouth.

"Sasuke…" Her pneumatic voice resonated serenely. He watched her lips delicately trace the sound of his name.

"Sasuke…"

Her full, plump lips suddenly became thin and flattened. Her pale bloodstained face had undertaken a bronzed color devoid of any blood.

"Sasuke!" Naruto's face had drawn uncomfortably close to his own. "Hello? Are you still alive?"

Sasuke squirmed in protest to Naruto's unwarranted closeness.

"You're badly wounded. Can you get up?" Naruto's eyes hovered over Sasuke's shirt saturated with profusely flowing blood.

Sasuke's torso seemed lead-weighted and too heavy to lift upright. He remained planted to the ground too agonized to shift his position.

"If only Sakura were here…she…could…" Naruto's face puckered to an aggrieved scowl. "Why Sasuke? Why did you kill Sakura in the first place? Don't you feel any remorse for what you've done?"

"Shut up!" Sasuke hissed through his teeth. He grunted and writhed in place as an excruciating pain seized his chest. "Don't! Don't bring it up!"

Naruto glared into Sasuke's bloodied, unyielding eyes. He abruptly broke the connection and shifted his gaze down to Sasuke's critical wounds. "Sakura-chan…she seemed to know how to defeat this guy…she said to extract his soul from a scar on his back…but how do we know if that's true or not? There's no way we can get anywhere near him. He's way too powerful…Why did you side with him in the first place if you didn't know much about him? How are we supposed to fight someone who is immortal?"

"I didn't know he was immortal! I was certain he would help me exact revenge on Konoha if I heeded his orders. I had no idea he was involved with Sakura…."

"Now what are we going to do? We can't run and hide! We don't have Sakura to help us or provide us with any more information. This is your fault!"

"Err…" Sai half absorbed his comrades' bickering while he observed Tobi and the Susanoo simultaneously weave a series of hand signs.

"My fault?" Sasuke retorted crossly ignoring Sai's meek mumble. "He was toying with us until you broke his goddamn jewelry and triggered him into a full blown rage!"

"You're the one got involved with this guy in the first place!"

Sasuke snapped back at the blonde. "I made a mistake! Besides, blaming me isn't going to get us out of this predicament!"

"Umm…" Sai interpolated himself between the spatting Naruto and downed Sasuke. His ashen finger pointed to the sky. A rapidly descending mass peeked from the thin veil of cloud covering over their heads. "Excuse me for interrupting but there's a giant rock headed straight for us."

* * *

_A/N: Happy New Year! May 2012 be a prosperous and wonderful year to everyone. _


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